


Hidden

by Hope_And_Fire



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: 3rd pov, Angst, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gray Jedi, Humor, It will take them a hot second to get together, Love, OC x ARC Trooper Fives, OC x Commander Wolffe, POV Third Person, POV Third Person Limited, Romance, Slow Burn, These two are actual dorks, Violence, at first, kinda slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-09
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 43,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23084593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hope_And_Fire/pseuds/Hope_And_Fire
Summary: Years before the Clone Wars, on the mysterious planet Ultris, Luna Starborn tried to live a normal life as a Gray Jedi in training. Before her parents could tell her of their past, they were murdered before her eyes by the Dark Jedi known as Hecate. When she goes into hiding, she finds herself in her planet's army. Years after her parents' murder, the merciless ruler of Ultris known as Queen Pandora joins the Separatists and captures Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, and Captain Rex. Wanting to save her home from the Sith, she helps the heroes escape and joins the Army of the Republic. While Luna is trying to find out who she truly is, she discovers that she is falling for Captain Rex. Will the couple make the war out alive? Will Luna avenge her fallen parents?  And what will happen when she reveals her parents' forbidden secret?This is also posted on my Wattpad account: All_Things_Marvel
Relationships: CT-7567 | Rex/Original Female Character(s), Captain Rex x OC - Relationship, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 33





	1. Prologue

  
  
  


**_21 Years Ago on the Planet of Ultris..._ **

Alvara sprinted through the halls of the castle. She couldn't believe what she just saw, she couldn't believe that her sister would join the dark side. Ever since Alvara's coronation, her sister turned distant, they barely talked, and sometimes they wouldn't even look at each other. Alvara blamed herself mostly, but she was too worried about her newborn child, Luna, to think of it. She knew that she couldn't kill her sister without real evidence of her turning or else she would be executed along with her husband. If her sister even survived the attempt on her life, that would give her the power she craved for.

With Alvara's golden hair - a common trait the Starborn clan - and white cloak trailing behind her, she busted through the white, metal doors of her bedroom, nearly scaring the Force out of Azimuth in the process. As she dashed over to Azimuth, she glanced at the white marble of the oval-shaped room which glistened when a crack of lightning flashed across the night sky. She was relieved when she noticed the heavy, metal doors to the balcony were locked. No one would be intruding from there. 

Azimuth, like herself, was a Gray Jedi. However, he was taken by the Jedi Order, but eventually left and returned to Ultris. Alvara loved the brown-haired man to death ever since she first laid eyes on him. He was so kind and gentle, especially towards their daughter. She knew the bulky man would defend them until his final breath.

In his arms was Luna in a white bundle of soft blankets. One of her tiny hands clutched her father's white and gold robes. Azimuth would've chuckled at Luna if he didn't see the frightened face of his wife.

"What is it Alvara?" He asked. Tears threatened to leak from Alvara's ocean eyes.

"I-It's my sister. I saw her with red lightsabers, I heard her..." Alvara stopped, shocked. Her gaze fell on her beautiful daughter. Her shaking hands reached to touch Luna's golden, wispy hair. Her daughter giggled, opening her sky blue eyes. "She's going to kill us...and Luna." She said in barely a whisper with her voice wavering.

Azimuth held his daughter closer protectively. "We will protect her, Alvara." 

Alvara grasped the Light Amulet that hung on a golden chain around her neck. The circular pendant was made of an unknown metal. Etched into the cold metal was an angular design with a notch of gold at the top. The amulet was a powerful family heirloom. Many secrets and hidden powers were locked up inside the pendant. Alvara wished she would've been able to give the necklace to Luna in a peaceful time, but she knew that would never happen now.

"Yes, protect her you must." A soft yet ancient voice came from the closed balcony doors.

The parents turned around and spotted The Grandmother, an advisor of Alvara. The short tan-skinned woman wore a blush red and white, frayed robe. Her light gray hair was tied into three ponytails, two small ones in the front and a thick one in the back. In her wrinkled hands, she held a wooden staff that was a foot taller than her. A wooden knot and two white and black feathers were at the end of the staff.

The wise woman was very secretive for unknown reasons. There wasn't much information on her except that she's really kriffing old, has a strong connection with the Force, and she only comes to visit when bad things are about to happen.

Azimuth nearly jumped out of his skin. "I really hate how she appears out of nowhere like that." He grumbled.

The Grandmother minced over to the couple. She hummed as she closed her gray eyes. "I have foreseen this child's future. You must hide her in the southern hemisphere and train her in the ways of the Force, prepare Luna for her destiny." The Grandmother opened her eyes. "One day you will be slane by your sister Alvara." The Grandmother warned.

Alvara and Azimuth shook upon hearing her words. "What destiny?" Azimuth questioned, with a hint of anger building in his voice. He clutched Luna tighter.

The Grandmother ignored him and continued in a low voice. "Tell the people of Ultris that your child is dead, hide her away immediately, never tell Luna of her royal heritage."

Alvara and Azimuth glanced at each other and then at Luna. Before they could ask The Grandmother any more questions, she was gone.

"I hate it when she leaves," Alvara mumbled.

Placing Luna in Alvara's arms, Azimuth walked to his dresser and grabbed the ancient Gray Jedi artifact, Moira's Box. The cube was big enough to put a hand in. Designs of stars and planets were carved into the silver and blue cube. On one edge of the light box was a metallic string. On one side of the cube was a groove in the metal. The groove flashed blue when Azimuth's finger grazed it.

Tying the box to his belt, he turned to Alvara. "We must leave, now. "

Alvara nodded in agreement as Azimuth slid on his brown cloak. "Yes, we should." She whispered, kissing Luna's forehead.

In her head, she vowed to protect her daughter as long as she could. She promised to bring joy to her life before she passed. She will teach everything that she knows. And more importantly...

She will prepare her for her destiny.

  
  



	2. Luna: The Orders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna Starborn suffers from her nightmares that plague her sleep and receives orders from her general.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment!

_ "She found us Azimuth!" Luna's mother screamed, darting through the door of the small house. Seeing the memory of her terrified face once again made her stomach drop. "Hecate is a few clicks away from us, we need to get Luna out of here!" _

Luna tossed and turned on her rock-hard mattress, ' _ No, not this nightmare again.' _

_ Luna's father jumped from his seat and picked up her fourteen-year-old form from the chair, leaving Moira's Box and her lightsabers sitting on the wooden table. Alvara grabbed the bag that was full of clothes, money, and food from the small closet, and dashed outside. Running to the door, the vision of the dream flashed white. _

_ "I'll distract Hecate, you two run!" Azimuth's voice echoed. _

_ The image of Luna's father being thrown into the wretched dark canyon by Hecate seared into her mind. His screams became more distant as he fell between the crystallized walls. As Alvara and Luna ran up the golden grassy hill, Luna glanced behind her and saw Hecate's masked face glaring at her from afar. _

_ With another flash of light, the nightmare brought Luna to her shaking form when Hecate towered over her with her red lightsabers raised above her head. Luna's back was pressed against a boulder at a base of a steep, rocky hill. Before she could strike her down, Alvara drop kicked the black-robed woman, and force pushed her into her speeder. Sparks flew from the black speeder as the Dark Jedi crashed into it. _

Luna couldn't wake up from her nightmare; it had an iron grip on her.  _ 'Please let this end!' She pleaded mentally.  _

_ Alvara knelt in front of Luna and hastily unhooked the clasp of the Light Amulet around her neck and clasped it around hers. The necklace hummed as the gold metal burned brightly for a split second. She pulled Luna's long golden locks out from under the chain and gripped her shoulders. _

_ "Luna listen to me, you run as fast as you can." Her mother fretted. _

_ Tears ran down her reddened cheeks. "No, mom, please!" Luna sobbed. _

_ "Stay hidden, tell no one who you truly are, remember your training," Alvara instructed with a tear escaping down her cheek. She stood up and ignited her yellow lightsabers, positioning them protectively in front of her. Hecate stubbled to her feet, once she regained her balance, she charged at Alvara without hesitation. "I love you, Luna." She smiled as she blocked Hecate's lightsabers. "Now, run! Don't look back!" _

_ Holding back a sob, Luna began to climb up the rocky hill. Rageful cries and the sound of clashing lightsabers resonated in the rocky terrain as she jumped from rock to rock. She didn't dare to look back until she was standing on the edge of the hill. She watched helplessly as Hecate drove her lightsabers through her mother's chest. _

"NNNOOO!"

Screaming awake, Luna fell out of her bed, landing on the freezing floor of her private quarters. Groaning, she placed a shaking hand on her sweaty forehead. 

_ 'Force,'  _ She groaned internally, _ 'why does this keep happening?' _

The nightmare kept on haunting her dreams for the past week and was the cause for sleepless nights. Having the same nightmare each night made Luna think the Force was trying to warn her about the future, or at least remind her of who she truly was. She would immediately dismiss the thought; she did cut herself off from the Force and lied about her she really was for a reason. 

To hide from  _ her.  _

Wiping the sweat off her forehead with her loose, white sleeve, Luna sat on top of the gray blankets of her, rock-hard twin-sized bed. She huffed as She rubbed the exhaustion off her eyes. She turned on the lamp in her small gray room, and slowly up stood in front of the mirror next to her bed. Her stomach dropped when she realized she was in her true form.

"Fratz!"

Clutching her wavy golden hair, and staring at her sky blue eyes in the mirror, Luna quickly morphed into her Captain Nixa Katari form. Her light olive skin paled, almost to the shade of white. Her hair shortened to a straight bob cut as it turned black. Her diamonded shaped face thinned into a sharp triangle-shaped jaw. Her kind eyes changed to a stern, dark brown ones while her lips thinned and changed into a lighter shade of pink. Huffing, she sauntered to her small closet to put on her military uniform.

Luna was one of the last Ultrisians to have the ability to shapeshift. She discovered the ability when she was ten years old while attempting to hide from her dad. She could easily morph into any humanoid female and keep that form without thinking. Sometimes in her sleep, Luna would change to her real body. Turning into males, on the other hand, took a large amount of concentration. She could make her voice sound like anyone, which made most missions easier.

When Luna went into hiding, she shapeshifted and took the persona of Nixa Katari. After a couple of weeks, she found herself at Ultris's Capital, the City of Ulta, named after the first queen. She was at the wrong place at the wrong time when soldiers from Ultris's Warrior Clan took her to the palace. At the time she was seen as a homeless child in tattered clothes with no hope of being in the powerful Technology Clan (basically the working class of Ultris). When the soldiers took her, they put Luna in a beginner combat training at the military academy. She couldn't help herself from showing the instructor her advanced fighting skills. Impressed (and surprised), the instructor placed Luna in advanced training. After five years of the difficult training, Queen Pandora promoted her to captain and assigned her to command a covert-ops team. After a few suicide missions, they became known as the Amazons, a well-known team composed of deadliest women on Ultris. Two years after becoming a team, Luna and her team were itching to fight the Separatist scum in the Clone War.

Grabbing the black uniform, Luna placed it on her bed so she could take off the white gown. After taking off the gown, she changed into the tight, black undersuit and slid into the heavy boots that reached to her knees. Before putting on the armor, she noticed the blue line that ran down the center of the light armor had started to chip. Sighing at her poor paint job, she began to attach the upper body armor. After fastening the gauntlets, she attached the leg armor. For the finishing touches, she fastened her belt around her hips and attached her black, leather kama, a symbol of her rank as captain, to it. The kama had blue trim and back of it had a split all the belt. Finally, she attached the holsters for her bow staff and her energy bow and stuffed the Light Amulet down her undersuit.

Surveying herself in the mirror, Luna realized she still looked like turf. Bags hung under her eyes, her face was paler than normal, and bits of frizzy hair stuck up at odd angles. 

Too tired to fix her appearance, Luna exited her room. The door gave a soft hiss as it closed behind her. She walked to the end of the gray, lightened, underground hallway where the turbolift was. Entering the turbolift, she pressed for the level where the mess hall was located. She figured that's where she would find her team at the Force forsaken hour of the morning. 

**\------------------**

"I'm a medic, not a doctor." Luna heard Emmie say with her silvery voice as she entered the large mess hall.

Emmie, the medic of the Amazons, was the mother of the group. Besides Luna, she was the main person that kept them from killing each other. Whenever they would injure themselves by doing risky stunts (which was often), she would lecture them while giving them a look of disapproval with her light gray eyes. She always wore her dyed white hair up in a high ponytail. Like the rest of them, she wore the same type of uniform, except hers had red lines instead of blue and had the red cross symbol on her shoulders. On missions, she would carry a med-pack on her back and use two standard Ultrisian pistols.

"What's the difference?" Nari and Zaria asked in unison.

Nari was the youngest in the team. The eighteen-year-old was a master of sneaking, espionage, and her aim was as straight as a lightsaber. Due to the fact was in special forces training, it wasn't surprising that her skills outmatched any spy that Luna knew. The small scout kept her dyed dark purple hair in a feathered pixie cut. Her uniform was the most unique out of all of theirs. She wore a black leather trench coat with a hood over her armor. Her weapons of choice were a sniper rifle, blaster, and two black daggers.

Zaria was a weapons specialist, an expert in hand to hand combat, and probably the tallest and strongest woman in the galaxy. To reach eye level with the loud woman someone would have to stand on a chair. She may have looked terrifying, but Luna knew she was just a big teddy bear. However, she could be scary when she wanted to be. Whenever hostiles saw her charging at them with her dark blue eyes full of anger and her long brown ponytail whipping behind her, they would run for their fratzing life 'cause they knew she would destroy them with her oversized machine gun.

Before Emmie could explain, Helena, Luna's second in command and one of her best-friends, jumped in, "A doctor cures people. A medic, well, they make you more comfortable while you're dying." She deadpanned after taking a sip of her caf.

Helena was the only one on the team who was put in the same advanced training at the same time as Luna. They did form a friendly rivalry which got them into a couple of fights. Half of the time, Luna would win. The only thing Luna would admit about the Sass-Queen was that she was a better pilot. Like Zaria, she would put her straight, charcoal-colored hair in a ponytail. In battle, she carried a blaster rifle, a small handgun, and a black blade. 

"Remind me to never get shot then," Luna called from the sliding doors, walking over to the table they sat at. The mess hall was practically abandoned, but she knew the rest of the warriors would come in soon.

Helena scanned her head to toe with her storm-gray eyes. "You look like turf, Nixa." 

Luna rubbed her eye and sat down next to Helena. "Thank you, Helena, I definitely did not know that." 

Emmie hopped out her seat, snickering, and went to get me a cup of caf. Luna practically slammed her head on the hard table and groaned.

"Same nightmare," Nari paused, looking around before whispering, "Luna?"

Luna nodded. They were the four out of six people who knew who she really was. Luna told them after a full year of missions when they practically became a family. They trusted each other with their lives and did not hide any secrets. They swore to her that would never tell anyone and they never did. 

"Yep."

"Could this mean something?" Zaria questioned.

"I honestly don't know," Luna admitted.

Emmie came back and gave her a cup of caf before sitting back down in her seat. Nari huffed, pulling out a datapad from her coat. "Well, I have some good news. The Jedi are visiting today to negotiate a treaty with Queen Pandora. Judging by Ultris's past of being with the Light Side of the Force, I think she's going to join the Republic."

"Finally! I can't wait to scrap some droids." Zaira cheered.

"Maybe now Ultris will stop being so secretive," Emmie muttered.

"And we would be selling our advance tech to the Republic," Helena added, taking another sip of her caf.

Luna hummed in agreement, taking a swig of her caf. For centuries Ultris was known as the secretive planet of the Outer Rim. Ultris was so secretive because of its major advancements in technology. They didn't want some pirate to steal the tech, so Ultris cut off all communications to Outsiders. Ultris wouldn't let any Outsider enter unless the Queen permitted it. The only thing the Outsiders knew for certain was Ultris's strong connection to the Force.

The Light Side was very strong on the surface of Ultris. Light Temples, Temples for the Grey Jedi, were scattered along around the planet and forgotten territories of Ultris. However, at Ultris's core, was the planet's Dark Side. When Dark Jedi were forced to go into hiding due to Queen Ulta's powerful rein, they escaped to the core of the planet where they spread their darkness. The strongest Dark Jedi created Temples, forbidden Lightsabers, and artifacts such as the Dark Pendant. With their dark power spreading underground, some of it branched to the surface, creating the deadly gorges that swallowed up the criminals of Ultris or...innocents people like her father. 

"Do you think they know about our teleporters?" Nari asked, sliding the datapad back in her coat.

Helena brushed her fingers through Luna's hair, trying to get it somewhat tidy. Her sharp nails grazed her scalp. "Definitely not."

"I'm interested in the Clone Troopers," Emmie said mockingly, peering at Helena teasingly.

Helena glared at Emmie as she parted Luna's hair. "It was the  _ one  _ time I said that the clones were hot."

Zaria rolled her eyes. "But they're guys."

They burst into laughter while Zaria glared at the four of them. She nearly slapped Nari in the back of the head when she snickered something about Zaria and female Jedi. Before Zaria could give them her usual death threats, General Crux marched through the doors and over to our table.

General Crux, also known as Princess Sierra, was one of the cruelest people Luna knew. Sierra was the eldest child of Queen Pandora, meaning she was first in line for the throne and she had the second-highest authority. Luna figured Sierra could get away with pretty much anything; smuggling, murder, illegal interactions with outsiders, etc. Everyone knew that Sierra was Queen Pandora's favorite daughter. 

Luna knew that Sierra was disgusted by her very existence. She knew the general was just jealous of her since she was better in the academy training. Sierra wasn't placed in the advanced training program that Luna was in under two years after she had been in it. The princess got extra training from an instructor to be better than her. A year before graduation, Sierra and Luna faced off in a combat tournament. Luna barely won the match, but Sierra's loss made her anger grow. 

Luna always hated the fact that Sierra demanded that she had to have the best weapons. She understood that Sierra was the Head General, but she was getting tired of dealing with her whining. 

When Luna was given her lumium bow staff by the queen, Sierra was outraged. She wanted to have a weapon made out of the rare, unbreakable metal. Lumium was so strong that lightsabers couldn't cut through it. Queen Pandora dismissed her from her throne room when that incident.

In her raven-colored armor, Sierra seemed to be more dangerous than Luna. Her smooth armor was designed to be able to deflect blasters to force the opponent to engage hand to hand combat. Her helmet pulled back her thick, dark brown hair to let it flow wildly behind her. Attached to the helmet was a small black crown with a large pearl in the center. A black, leather-like cape covered her backside. Sheathed at her hips were her black blades and blaster. When ignited, a line of plasma energy ran along the blade - almost acting like a lightsaber. Her blaster, when charged, could shoot an explosive blast of plasma. 

Sierra slid the datapad over to me. "Captain Katari." She said with venom. Her black eyes glared at me, full of hatred. "Queen Pandora requests you to escort the Jedi to the throne room with the guards. Be at Landing Platform Six at noon." Sierra eyed Luna's drained form and sneered. "And get cleaned up Katari, you look like turf."

After she turned and left the mess hall, Helena punched Luna's arm. "OW!" She exclaimed, jumping in her seat. "What was that for?"

"To wake you up. The General is right, you look like turf."

Luna raised her hands in defeat. "Okay, I get it. I need to get cleaned up." She sighed in annoyance, getting up to head to her quarters.

Little did Luna know that in a couple of hours she would meet the man who would change her life forever.

  
  
  



	3. Luna: Deception of The Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Queen Pandora of Ultris reveals her true alliance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment!

After taking a quick power nap, Luna cleaned herself up. While doing so, she wondered why Queen Pandora would have her escort the Jedi. (She also wondered why it wasn't Republic Diplomats from the Senate but she was too tired to think about it further.) Wouldn't Pandora rather have General Sierra do it since she held a higher rank? When she realized she had to be on the landing platform in ten minutes, she bolted out of her quarters and into the turbo lift at the end of the hallway.

The platform was one of the lower levels of the white and gold, egg-shaped castle which was in the center of the city. The platform was like a large, snowflake-shaped ring that wrapped around its base. Wide catwalks led to the circular landing and teleporting platforms.

Luna was almost blinded by the big, bright sun looming over the large city. It's warm rays peaked over the top of the gray wall that surrounded the city. The castle was in the center and towered over the buildings of Ulta. Surrounding the castle were various training grounds for the Warrior Clan and lively gardens for parties that queen hosts. 

Facing the northern side of the castle was the statue of Queen Ulta. After Ulta's untimely demise in the Monarch War, the statue was built under the orders of her daughter, Queen Orlena. The ancient statue stood as high as the castle. The white stone was carved to show Ulta standing with her arms crossing in front of her chest as she held her ignited yellow lightsabers. She wore her famous royal dress, loose long sleeves, a diamond-shaped cut-out on her chest and slit that ran up to her thighs. Her crown, which had three diamonds in the center, was placed on top of her long, wavy hair.

Next to the castle was the Technology Clan's facility; the main factory where the best scientists and engineers manufactured Ultris's technology. The white building was shaped like a sideways oval. The shining white metal of the building had golden squares that were scattered around it. 

The Technology Clan's main facility was like a fortress. There were multiple soldiers stationed in different areas of the building. The clan made sure to have cameras at every nook and cranny. If anyone tried to climb up the building (if they weren't stopped by the army of security guards) they would be electrocuted by the metal. It was impossible to get in. 

Beyond the walls of the city were the golden, grassy plains of Ultris. The grass waved by the strong winds, showing off its golden hues. Running on the edge of the horizon, Luna spotted a herd of wild Stormpedes. Stormpedes were omnivorous, eight-legged horses of Ultris. They were known for their incredible speed, sharp fangs, and hard armor-like skin. These creatures came in a variety of colors, from being a plain white or to having blue and black spots. The four-eyed beasts may seem terrifying, but they're really oversized puppies who have big hearts.

A small smile formed on Luna’s lips as she remembered her first friend after her parent’s death.  _ 'I wonder how Blue Jay is doing.' _

Pushing her thoughts aside, Luna stood in front of two rows of guards. Their garb was similar to the Elite Red Guards who protect the Chancellor. They wore white robes with a white, winged helmet. The metal helmet had a black glass covering their eyes. Their weapons were two white swords that had a plasma energy beam along the blade and a Ultrisian Blaster.

Spotting the Jedi's red T-6 shuttle, Luna watched it as it landed on the platform in front of her. The bay doors opened with a loud  _ hiss _ , revealing three Jedi and two clone troopers. She assumed that the two Jedi were Masters, and the third a Padawan. One of the Jedi Masters wore a white garb and had a brown beard. The other one, who was younger, wore a dark blue and red attire. The Padawan, to her surprise, was a small Togruta girl. Behind the padawan was a clone trooper in white and orange armor.

The trooper next to him, however, caught Luna's eye. She could tell the soldier was a high ranking officer due to his pauldron and kama. The jaig eyes on his helmet intrigued her. She knew that jaig eyes were a Mandalorian symbol of honor and were only given to those who committed great acts of bravery. For the first time in seven years, Luna felt the Force. A strong wave of the Force made her drop her guard and pulled her to him. Even the Light Amulet started to react; heat grew from the pendant beneath her undershirt.

Realizing she was staring at the man (was he staring too? Curse those helmets), Luna turned her attention to the Jedi and built her guard back up. "Welcome to the City of Ulta, Capital of Ultris. I am Captain Nixa Katari, Leader of the Amazons."

The Jedi in the white spoke first. "I am Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, and this is Commander Cody." He greeted, gesturing to the trooper in the white and orange armor.

"I am Anakin Skywalker, this is my Padawan Ahsoka Tano, and this is," Anakin gestured to the other clone, "Captain Rex."

_ Rex. _

The captain took his helmet off, revealing his beautiful golden brown eyes and blonde buzz hair. This was the first time Luna saw a clone's face. She couldn't help but think he was really attractive. A small grin formed on his face when she met his eyes.

He nodded to her. "Ma'am."

His voice sent a small shiver down her spine. A flash of heat shot from the Light Amulet, almost making her yelp. Luna glanced down, furrowing her eyebrows, ‘ _ What the fratz is going on?’ _

Luna took her attention back to the Jedi once again. "Queen Pandora is in a throne room. It would be wise to not keep her waiting." She said, turning around. Captain Rex put his helmet back on. "Follow me please."

A clone trooper, whom Luna assumed was the pilot, walked into the bay doors. "I'll wait in the ship, Generals." The Generals nodded at the clone trooper as he walked back in the ship.

Once Luna turned around, the six guards moved to form a block around the visitors. As she led them to the turbolift, she pondered why a wave of the Force struck her when she saw the clone captain. Why would the Light Amulet grow warmer whenever he would get close to her? Nothing could ever break her guard, but that man did. With the amulet acting up, it confused her greatly; it never did anything besides giving off a soft glow every so often.

"Is it true?" Obi-Wan questioned, breaking Luna from her thoughts.

She turned around and held her hands behind her back. "Excuse me?" 

"Is it true Ultris has teleporting technology?" Obi-Wan asked, intrigued 

Luna nodded. "Indeed, it is true." The three Jedi (and possibly the troopers) eyes widened.

"Really?" Ahsoka gasped.

"Yes, the other platforms are for teleporting. They can teleport six people at a time. The farthest we can take a person safely is halfway to the poles." Luna explained as they were getting closer to the throne room."We are currently trying to get them to work on our spaceships so transporting supplies and soldiers can be easier. We haven't had any luck yet, but our scientists will find a way." 

She sighed, turning herself to face the sliding doors. She hoped the Jedi wouldn't say anything to make the queen upset during the negotiations. Queen Pandora was known for her short temper and harsh punishments. After her husband had mysteriously died, a rumor spread of her killing him after insulting her. If the Jedi would disrespect her in any way, she might order the guards throw them down a dark canyon.

Luna noticed the doors were about to open. Without looking at the Jedi, Luna said, "Just a warning, Queen Pandora has a short temper, so watch your tongue."

"You hear that Anakin? Watch your tongue." Obi-Wan mused, making Ahsoka and the troopers snicker.

"Shut up," Anakin mumbled as the doors slid open to the throne room. 

The circular shaped room was at the very top of the castle. The windows acted as the dome ceiling, which gave the queen the best view of the city. Guards were stationed at each point of the room. Their heads turned to the turbolift as they entered. Leading to the throne was a white carpet which laid on top of the gray marble. Standing next to the throne's steps were Sierra and her little sister, Allura, and sitting in it was Queen Pandora.

From her throne, her sharp, dark brown eyes gazed upon the Jedi and the clone soldiers. A slight grin formed her thin red lips as she eyed the Jedi. Her dark brown hair was styled in a large cinnamon roll like bun which had glinting diamonds pinned into it. Her silver crown was covered in small shiny diamonds; in the center of it was an oval shaped diamond which was as long as Luna’s middle finger. Her long, diamonded patterned, raven dress hugged her exposed shoulders tightly, showing off her large diamond choker. Her raven-colored, claw-like nails glistened in the sunlight. She wasn't Force Sensitive, unlike most of the past Queens, but she still radiated a fear and power.

Allura Crux was the youngest daughter of the queen and the fifth person who knew Luna’s secret. She was appointed Senator of Ultris, which was the most useless job a person could have on the overly secretive planet. She was only appointed Senator due to Royal Tradition. The oldest daughter would be destined to be Queen while the second oldest daughter would be a Senator or advisor to the future Queen. Sierra almost hated her sister as much as she hated Luna, so being her advisor was out of the question. However, Ultris joining the Clone War would put her job into use.

Allura was nothing like her mother and sister, in fact, she was the exact opposite of them. Luna’s best friend was a very patient and calm person, two key things to have when you are surrounded by the idiots known as her family. Whenever she talks to the soldiers or any high ranking official she was cool and collective. However, if she was in front of anybody else, she would turn into her awkward, twenty-year-old self. When Luna walked into the room, she expected her to look calm, instead, she was met with eyes full of fear.

Allura tried to keep a stoic face, but her dark brown eyes practically screamed at Luna to run. When Sierra shot a glare at her, Allura tilted her head downwards, moving her long, light brown, curly locks. Under the loose sleeves of her long blue dress, Allura was fidgeting with her fingers. Luna spotted a small, silver Ultrisian blaster hanging on her hip, causing her to look at Allura in bewilderment. Allura never carried a blaster as far as Luna knew.

Before Luna could think about Allura's strange behavior, she felt a strong, dark presence inside the castle through the Force. Luna almost staggered as she led the Jedi to the throne. She knew it wasn't Hecate, the presence wasn’t as strong as the Dark Jedi’s.

A small scowl formed on Luna’s features as she peered down at the floor,  _ ‘What is going on?’  _

Before she could analyze the situation, Queen Pandora spoke.

"Welcome Jedi," She paused, giving the clone troopers a questioning look, "and Clone Troopers." Her voice had a hint of disgust.

"Greetings Queen Pandora, I am Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, his Pada-"

"Yes, yes, I know who you are." She cut him off, examining her nails. She stood up and strutted down the steps of the throne, slightly glaring at the Jedi and the two clones.

Allura began to slowly step towards the turbolift.

"Ultris, as you know, has been kept at the highest security for centuries." The queen glanced at the Jedi. "I've been wanting to change that." She then glared at me. "Among.....other things."

_ Among other things. _

Queen Pandora began to set Luna on edge; her hands began to shake slowly. Glancing at Queen Pandora and then Sierra, Luna noticed the unsettling smirks forming on their faces. She saw the guards gripping their weapons tighter. Luna turned her head, seeing Allura was halfway to the turbolift now. A line of sweat dripped down Allura's face. The Force again warned her of the dark presence inside the castle; it was coming up the turbo lift.

The Jedi and the Clone officers also felt the tension in the room. Anakin and Obi-Wan glanced at each other as did Commander Cody and Captain Rex as they edge their hands to their weapons. Ahsoka shot a questioning look at the Queen, moving her hands closer to her lightsaber. They knew as well Luna that all of this was a trap.

A trap that Luna couldn't believe was happening.

"Which is why I am breaking tradition to save my people, Jedi." She spat with disgust. The guards trod closer to the Jedi and the clones.

Luna stepped back in shock, ‘ _ No…’ _

"The Light that has existed on this planet kept my people chained for far too long."

_ ‘She cannot be taking her people to the Dark Side......SHE CAN'T DO THIS!’ _

"Which is why I will be joining the Separatist Alliance."

  
  



	4. Luna: A Promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna makes a silently promise to the GAR Officers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment!

_ "Which is why I will be joining the Separatist Alliance."  _

The guards attacked.

It was like they were given a silent command from Sierra once those dreadful words left Queen Pandora's lips. Behind Luna, she could hear the Jedi igniting their blades as the guards charged at them. Their sabers clashed against the guards' blades. The firing of Captain Rex and Commander Cody's blasters rang through the air as they met their target. 

Luna wanted to stop the guards, she wanted to take down Sierra, she wanted to kill the queen for betraying the ancient ways, but she couldn't. She couldn't, she would be killed if she acted now. She would have to play along until she could help them. 

She reached for her bow staff behind her,  _ ‘I'm sorry…’  _

Twisting around to join the fight, Luna whipped out her bow staff and extended it. The Padawan, Ahsoka, Force pushed the two guards into the wall, knocking them out. Ahsoka turned around and gave Luna a harsh glare before charging at her. Her hands tightened around the cool, brown, metal staff as she blocked the padawan’s lightsaber. Sparks flew from her staff when her saber struck it. 

"How could you do this?" Ahsoka growled as Luna pushed her lightsaber back and kicked her in the gut. The young Jedi stumbled and nearly lost her balance. 

"I must do as the queen demands young one," Luna said, spinning the staff intimidatingly with one hand. "Surrender now and no harm will come to you!" 

_ ‘Please surrender, please surrender, please surrender.’  _

Luna didn't want to hurt Ahsoka or any of the Republic Officers, but she needed to stop the fight from escalating further. It was getting worse every second. She could feel the dark presence getting closer to the throne room as she watched the two Jedi kill two guards with a simple strike from their lightsabers. While shouting snarky comments at each other, they fought off the two guards that replaced the two they killed. On the other side of the room were the clone officers. They were back to back as they shot down the guards surrounding them. Luna couldn't help but notice how Captain Rex stayed so calm and his target. It was rather hypnotizing and attr-

_ ‘For the love of Ulta Luna, save their lives now, ogle over the Captain later!’  _ Luna yelled at herself mentally. ‘... _ An unbelievably hot Captain.’ _

She shook her head and groaned _. _

"I don't surrender to Separatists!" Ahsoka declared with venom in her voice. She held her green lightsaber closer. 

"You just made my job much harder young one," Luna muttered under her breath. 

She charged at Ahsoka with her staff held high. Luna swung it down but Ahsoka blocked it with her lightsaber. The padawan pushed her back and veered her lightsaber to her head. Luna quickly blocked her attack and kicked her back. Spinning down low, Luna rammed her staff into her legs, causing her to fall to the ground. Her deactivated lightsaber fell next to her. Before Luna could slam the staff on her head, Ahsoka rolled away from her with her lightsaber in her hand. Ahsoka swiftly jumped up and charged at Luna with her lightsaber ignited. 

Luna growled, ‘ _ I need to end this now!’  _

As the distance closed between them, Ahsoka held her lightsaber above her head as she Force Jumped above Luna. Before she could deliver a deadly blow, Luna rolled forward. Swinging around, she swiftly retracted her bow staff and slid it into its holster on her back before kicking the young padawan to the ground. Ahsoka's defused lightsaber left her hand and rolled to Luna’s feet. Snatching it, she tackled her before she could get up and tightly wrapped one arm around her shoulders tightly. With her back facing her, Luna ignited her lightsaber and held it close to her neck. 

"Hey, Jedi!" Luna shouted, causing everyone to freeze. The Jedi slightly lowered their humming lightsabers while the Clone Officers aimed their weapons at her. The guards kept their weapons ready to strike at moments noticed. Luna mentally sighed in annoyance, the Clone Officers and Jedi killed five guards; only five remained. She noticed Queen Pandora smiling in approval as she watched from her throne. Sierra stood at the bottom of the throne while her younger sister plodded to the turbo lift. 

Ahsoka squirmed in Luna’s constricting hold. "Let me go!"

"Ahsoka!" Anakin exclaimed. 

"Surrender Republic Dogs or the Padawan dies!" Luna threatened, moving the lightsaber closer to her neck. 

Anakin gave Ahsoka a distressed look. Luna could see it in his eyes that he was trying to think of a way to free Ahsoka and escape. Luna did the same thing too when she had decisions such as this. In the end, she knew he would surrender. 

It was hard to ignore Captain's Rex's burning hate and frustration through the Force. His hate for the queen almost matched Luna’s. She could tell he wanted to kill the queen for betraying the Republic. Rex's frustration was focused on everything in his life. The war, the death, his comrades....this very moment. Luna couldn't help but feel the same. 

"Stand down," Anakin ordered reluctantly. "Drop your weapons." 

Once the Jedi and Clone Officers dropped their weapons, the guards kicked them onto their knees. Luna deactivated Ahsoka's Lightsaber and pushed her onto her knees. Clipping the Jedi’s lightsaber on her belt, a guard walked over and cuffed Ahsoka’s arms behind her back. The guards roughly threw off the clone troopers helmets as they bound their arms behind their back.

Just as the Republic Officers were contained, the turbo lift's doors hissed open to reveal the dark presence, Asajj Ventress. The bald woman smirked upon seeing the Jedi and The Clones on their knees. Keeping an eye on Obi-wan, she exited off the turbo lift.

Allura shot Luna a fearful glance as she quietly walked behind Ventress and entered the turbo lift. The lift's doors hissed to a close. 

"Count Dooku will be pleased to hear that you have captured Anakin Skywalker and Obi-wan Kenobi." The assassin said as she sauntered to the throne. 

Queen Pandora gestured at Luna. "You have Captain Katari to thank, assassin." The queen smiled. "It was her quick thinking that won us this victory." 

Sierra silently growled as she gave Luna her signature death glare. 

Ventress strode around Luna as if she was studying her. She stood up straight and eyed her from the corner of my eye. 

_ ‘Separatist Scum,’  _ Luna hissed. __

"Hmm...strong...intelligent...a perfect warrior," Ventress noted as she walked away from Luna. "The Separatist Alliance will need warriors such as Katari to wipe out the Republic." 

Queen Pandora hummed in delight. "Of course." She smirked. "Captain Katari." 

Luna turned to face her, "Yes my queen?" 

"Take the prisoners to the cells. Make sure they are well guarded." She ordered. "You are dismissed." 

Luna bowed. "Of course, my queen." 

Luna turned to the guards and studied the prisoners. None of them were hurt, luckily. She could feel their enraged glares on her as she walked to them. Her gaze fell on Captain Rex, who was giving her a disgusted glare. 

All Luna wanted to do at that moment was to free them. She was appalled by what she had to do. She went against her oath as a Gray Jedi and a warrior; to protect her people from the darkness. She was enraged by Queen Pandora for breaking the same oath. She was supposed to lead her people to the light, not send them to the darkness. 

Luna knew what she had to do to save her people, but she had to save the Jedi and the clone troopers first. 

Luna’s gaze followed the Jedi and the Clone Troopers as they were being led to the turbolift, ‘ _ I will get you out of here...I promise.’  _

  
  
  



	5. Luna: Planning the Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna begins to plan the GAR Officers' escape.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment!

Luna couldn't stop thinking about Queen Pandora's betrayal as she led the Republic Prisoners their cells. Pandora broke Ultrisian Tradition, the Scared Laws given by Queen Ulta herself, and she threw them away as they meant nothing. By joining the Separatists, Queen Pandora gave Ultris, a planet with a strong connection to the Force, to the Sith. Luna refused to stand by and watch her people fall by the Sith; she vowed to break out the Clone Troopers and the Jedi. However, there was a small problem...

It was nearly impossible to escape Ultris. 

The Ultrisian cell compound had a ray shield at its entrance. Even if the prisoners managed to disable the shield, guards were stationed at every exit, ship, and teleporter platform. Stealing a Jedi Holocron would easier than getting past them. Luna knew if they managed to get passed the guards, they couldn’t steal a ship or speeder; it would be suicide. Hidden in most every Ultrisian machine was a kill switch. If someone stole a vehicle, the kill switch would activate and blow them up once they were a couple of miles away from the city. Their best bet would be getting to a teleporter platform; go far south as they could and hope for the best. 

Luna wouldn’t be able to accomplish all of this herself...it would take the entire Amazon squad to do it. 

Luna shook her head and groaned, earning a few looks from both the guards and the prisoners behind her. Asking her team, her new family, to break out the prisoners would committing treachery of the highest order. The punishment would be death or worse... _ Controlled.  _

Being thrown down a dark canyon would be a better fate than being Controlled. It was only sentenced to a person who had committed serious crimes. The criminal would be forced to obey the commands of a high ranking officer, like Luna, against their Will. They would be forced to do this until their last breath. 

Fortunately, being Controlled was a rare punishment, due to the materials needed to make the mind-controlling contraption were very scarce. The mechanism resembled Ultris's turquoise scorpion. The device would be implanted in the back of the person's neck with the stinger stabbing into the back of the person's head. Luna remembered when Emmie oversaw the horrific process herself. She said the victim of the Control Device would begin to lose feeling to their body before their mind would cease to have control over their being. After being told this, Luna silently wished she was the Queen so she could abolish the punishment. 

That little thought made her laugh, she could never be the queen of Ultris. She thought her mom secretly being the Queen of Ultris was ridiculous. Queen Pandora was the only heir from the past king and queen. Luna almost chuckled at the thought of her mother being the older sister of Pandora and hiding it from her. Dismissing the thought, Luna led the prisoners and guards out of the turbolift and into the prison. 

The Prison Level was one of the lowest and emptiest levels in the castle. The crime rate was very low in Ultris due to its harsh punishments. The dark gray halls were dimly lit. The dark prison was a labyrinth of hallways and staircases. Anyone who wasn't an Ultrisian Officer would be hopelessly lost if they tried to navigate through the halls. 

Luna raised her hand to signal the guards to halt. Turning around, she eyed the Republic prisoners. The two clones, Commander Cody and Captain Rex, shot her a look of disgust. The Jedi, on the other hand, seemed to be annoyed. Not at her, but Queen Pandora's actions. 

After taking a quick glance from the Captain, Luna quickly made a plan. If she placed them in the right cells and assign certain guards to them, she could help them make a quick escape. Luna looked at the guards sternly before giving them their orders.

"Take the Jedi to Hallway B12. Keep the two Masters separated from the Padawan. I want Controlled Unit 669 to be guarding their cells," Luna’s gaze fell on the Captain. The amulet gave off another warm glow. "I want these two in hallway E16. Put their weapons in the storage cell hallway D15," she gave the guards a stern before yelling, "Well? Get to it!" 

The guards bowed their heads and led the prisoners to their cells. As Luna walked past them, she made eye contact with Captain Rex. Her face softened when he glared at her over the guard's shoulder. She ignored the warmth the Light Amulet gave me when she looked at him. For a split second, she saw Rex give her a questioning look before turning around to follow the guards. 

As the guards marched down the hallway, Luna’s comlink on her wristguard went off. She pressed the small oval device 

"Katari here," Luna answered as she walked into the turbolift. 

_ "Captain Katari, Princess Allura wants to see you in her room,"  _ Helena informed.  _ "Be warned, Siera is in there."  _

The turbolift's doors hissed closed. Luna pressed the button to the level Allura's room was on. 

"Greaaat," she groaned, rolling her eyes slowly. 

_ ‘This should be fun,’ _ Luna thought sarcastically. 

"I'll be there in a few. Katari out." 

  
  



	6. Luna: Allura Crux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna discovers a royal ally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment!

"You are such an idiot Allura!" Sierra yelled angrily inside Allura's room.

Allura's room was in one of the highest levels of the castle. It was the only room in the quiet, white, gold, and silver hallway in the east wing. Carved into the walls was an image of the galaxy. There were silver planets of different sizes and billions of tiny white stars. The marble floor was a mixture of white, gold, and silver. Luna admired how the floor sparkled like the night sky. In the middle of the hallway was the door to Allura's room and etched into the center of it was Ultris. The golden planet had small white and silver moons orbiting it. White stars glistened along the sides of the door. Luna wanted to take in the rest of the artwork in the hallway, but Sierra brought her out of the trance as she busted Allura's bedroom doors open with a single kick.

"You should not have gone into that Republic ship without any guards! You are a poor excuse for an Ultrisian!" Sierra boomed with rage. Somehow, the angry general did not notice Luna standing next to the door frame as she continued to scream at her little sister.

Glancing at Allura, Luna noticed parts of her blue dress were ripped around her elbows and knees. I could see small red cuts and bruises forming on her arms and legs. I noticed Her blaster that was attached to her hip was missing. Judging by her injuries, I figured she had fallen. Was she pushed down?

Sierra threw her hands up as she turned around to face her sister. "Now our scanners can't find the ship and it's all your fault!" Sierra boomed again.

It was as if Luna was looking at Sierra on the day she bested her in the tournament. She had the same rageful and crazed look in her dark eyes. There were locks of disheveled hair sticking out under her helmet. The general's hands were formed into tight fists and her teeth were clenched together, ready to punch anything. Luna reached for her bow staff as she eyed Sierra cautiously.

"I was just trying to prove myself," Allura defended in her usual quiet voice as Sierra towered over her small form. "I just wanted to show that I'm not usele-"

"Allura!" Sierra shouted before she noticed Luna out of the corner of her eye and sneered. "Just shut up. You're lucky Dooku's assassin didn't come up here instead of me or else you would be dead."

Alurra bowed her head in shame. She glanced at Luna as if she was pleading her to stop her sister. Luna knew she was absolutely terrified of Sierra and never wanted to be the cause of her anger. Allura always feared that Sierra was going to kill her someday if she got too angry.

"Maybe you should start looking for the clone pilot, General Crux," Luna spoke calmly, trying to draw Sierra's attention to her.

Sierra turned to Luna, glaring at her. "For once I agree with you, captain. Get some guards to protect my sister from Ventress. I believe the assassin feels the same anger as I do from my sister's mistake and she may want to pay Allura a visit."

With a quick snap of her arm, Luna saluted her and nodded. "Yes, General." After giving her an annoyed look, Sierra turned and began to walk to the turbolift.

Allura looked up, eyeing Sierra in bewilderment. "I thought you hated me."

Sierra stopped, turning her head slightly as she let out a sigh. "I do, but I don't want to see you dead, little sister," Sierra replied in a low voice before she entered the turbolift.

Luna's eyes nearly jumped out of her skull. ' _Wait, since when does she slightly care for her sister?'_

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a clone pilot to kill," Sierra said darkly as the turbolift's doors closed.

Luna and Allura stared at the doors of the turbolift in silence, waiting to see if the general would come back. For a few seconds, Luna pondered over Sierra's feelings toward her little sister. From what Luna could see, it was obvious Sierra despised her (and pretty much everybody for that matter), but deep down did she secretly care about Allura? It was weird to think that Sierra could feel anything besides anger. Sometimes this made Luna wonder if she was secretly a Dark Jedi because of the amount of hate she could sense from her. It was almost as much as...Hecate.

Allura sighed in relief as she leaned against her bedroom door. "Oh my Ulta that was terrifying."

Luna crossed her arms as she raised an eyebrow. "So what did you do that made her so mad?"

Allura gave Luna an innocent smile before checking the hallway to see if they were alone. Once the princess realized they were alone, she closed the doors to her room and pulled Luna to the middle of the empty hallway. She pulled out a hand-sized datapad from her pocket in her dress and handed it to to the captain.

"I helped the clone pilot escape and told him where to hide," Allura confessed in a hushed tone. "This datapad is connected to the tracker I placed inside the ship."

Turning on the datapad, Luna realized that the trooper was in the southern hemisphere in The Canyon of the Fallen. She gave Allura an approving look for telling the pilot to go there. It was the perfect spot due to its rumors of a powerful, Dark Jedi Assassin being trapped beneath the ground for nearly 5,000 years. The assassin's final task before being trapped by Queen Ulta herself was to kill the Queen of Ultris. No one would be crazy enough to go there since it was foretold that one day the assassin would break free and kill anyone in his path that dared to stop him from killing the queen. No one would want to be there when the assassin finally freed himself.

Well, if it was true.

Luna's mother would tell her all of these ancient legends of Ultris when she was little. She didn't believe most of them. It was because of her dad; he always said that all of those legends were fake and they were only there to keep people from making terrible mistakes. Sometimes, Azimuth and Alvara would get into playful arguments about if a story was fake or not. It always brought a smile to Luna's face.

"Brilliant, I know," Allura beamed, taking Luna out of her thoughts.

The captain nodded in agreement before eyeing her ripped dress. "Yeah nice call, Allura. So...what happened to you?"

Allura examined her ripped dress and laughed nervously. "Well, that's a long story." Allura chuckled as she pushed back a strained of her hair behind her ear. "A few minutes before the Jedi and the Clone Troopers arrived, I overheard Sierra talking to one of the guards about the plan to betray the Jedi and Clones. I tried to tell you but my mom whisked me away to the throne room."

Allura stared at the ground before she continued. "I decided I was going to take things into my own hands and help the clone pilot escape or at least get the ship away from here if the pilot was missing or dead." Allura looked at me with an amused grin on her face. "So I ran into the ship with the blaster in my hand and I told the clone pilot what happened and I told him to hide in the canyon. After I told everything and placed the tracker in the ship, I told him to throw me out of the ship to make it look like I was trying to capture him."

Allura burst into a fit of laughter. "I wish I could've have seen what he looked like under the helmet because it was so funny."

Luna couldn't help but have an amused smile form on her face. "What did he do?"

Allura continued. " He mumbled, 'Sorry ma'am,' before he pushed me to the end of the ship. Then he kicked my ass out of there." She said, rubbing her butt. "Then my dress ripped."

Luna snorted. "So how does your butt feel, huh?"

"Don't even get me started." Allura deadpanned.

Luna placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a thankful smile. She was one of her closest friends and she would be leaving her who knew how long. Luna feared the thought of someone finding out what Allura did to help her. She would be sentenced to death for treason, just like her team if they decided to help their captain.

"Thank you, Allura," Luna said with tears welling in her eyes. Luna pulled her into a tight hug. "You have no idea how much this means to me."

Alura hugged her back. "I think I do, actually." She pulled away and handed Luna a gray comlink. "Take this so I can keep in touch with you while you're in the Republic. I'll give you information whenever I can."

"What?" Luna gasped. "Allura, that's too dangerous!"

"Luna, if we want Ultris to be free from the Separatists, you'll need someone on the inside to tell to give you info," Allura reasoned with a look of determination.

Luna sighed. "I don't even know if they'll even let me in! They could think I'm a spy or something."

It was a possibility that Luna wouldn't be allowed to join the Army of the Republic. The Jedi Council could think she was a spy to infiltrate their ranks. Even if she tried to reason with them saying she threw her life away by helping them escape, they still wouldn't even trust her. If they found out that she was a Gray Jedi, she most likely wouldn't be let in.

"Luna, they'll let you in," Allura said confidently. "Just trust me on this."

Luna sighed and nodded. "Okay," She said as she attached the comlink to her belt. "Just promise me you'll be careful."

Allura nodded. "I will."

Luna turned and trodded to the turbolift. Luna stepped inside when the doors slid open. "Take care, Allura. May the Force be with you."

"May the Force be with you too, Luna," Allura said as the doors closed behind her.

Luna shut her eyes as the turbolift began to descend to the teleporter level. She was running over her plan in her head to fix every flaw. The only thing she had to do before she talked to her team was to talk to an old friend.

Luna activated my comlink. "Helena, come in."

"Yes, Captain?" She responded instantly with her voice sounded angry and hoarse. It was as if she had been screaming right before I contacted her. "Did you know what the queen was planning?"

Luna sighed as she typed coordinates into the comlink. "No, I did not. Tell the team to meet at these coordinates in four hours."

There was a pause for Helena to read the coordinates. "Why are you going to do all the way down there?"

"I'm going to pay a visit to the Grandmother."

**\--------------------**


	7. Luna: The Grandmother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna visits the Grandmother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment

Luna sat on a flat rock in the middle of a golden grassy field in the southern hemisphere of Ultris. The sun was slowly sinking along the horizon, turning the white clouds into shades of purple and orange. Farther south behind her were giant, rocky mountains and grassy valleys. Somewhere in the maze of rocks, was the small, hidden house from her childhood. As she went through her happiest memories from her home, a small, cool breeze blew through her long, golden hair.

It had been ages since Luna visited the field. Her mother and father would bring her there to meditate in the peaceful scenery. After their death, she rarely visited the place since it brought back painful memories. However, when she did visit, she shapeshifted into her true form. There weren't any villages or trading routes anywhere near the field, so no one would see her as Luna Starborn. It was nice to put down Captain Katari's stoic demeanor for once.

"There is Passion, yet Peace," Luna breathed as she began to recite the Gray Jedi Code. "There is Strength, yet Serenity."

A small breeze began to blow around her as the Light Amulet grew warm against her chest. The amulet was no longer hidden under her armor, instead, it was laid on top of her chest plate. As she continued the code, her hair and small pebbles around her began to float.

"There is Power, yet Harmony," Luna breathed again. The rock beneath her began to tremble. "There is Chaos, yet Order. In Life there is Freedom."

Luna focused on her breathing and her surroundings. She needed a reminder of who she was before she left her planet. She needed to be at peace with her final decisions before she left her friends, and she needed to question her future decisions.

"In Death there is Purpose." Luna paused and opened one eye, expecting one of her parents to show up as a Force Ghost and tell her this was a bad idea. After a few moments of silence, she continued. "I will do what I must to guard the Balance. For the Force is all things, and I am the Force."

"For a while, I thought you forgot the code." An ancient female voice mused behind her.

Breaking her concentration, Luna's eyes shot open when she gasped. She stood up and turned around to see the Grandmother standing only a few steps away from her. Instead of being known for her powerful connection with the Force, the people of Ultris saw the Grandmother as the exiled advisor to Queen Pandora. When Queen Pandora was crowned queen after her parents' death, she cast the Grandmother away. From what Luna knew from the historical records, the queen didn't trust her because of her secrecy. Because of this, Queen Pandora placed her in the Southern Hemisphere - far away from any civilization.

Luna met the Grandmother when she was very young. She would visit from time to time and teach her the ways of the Force. She was a good teacher in a strange way. Everything she said was like trying to decipher a riddle. Even Luna's parents didn't know what the old lady was talking about half of the time.

The small, dark-skinned woman stepped forward with her long wooden stick in hand. "It has been a while, _Luna Starborn_." Grandmother hummed happily.

Luna nodded. "It has, two years I believe."

The Grandmother nodded and walked to the front of the stone. Taking a deep breath, she slowly sat down and covered her wrinkled hands with her red robe. After placing her wooden staff next to her, she exhaled and closed her eyes.

"So, you're leaving Ultris to fight the Separatists, hm?" The Grandmother asked.

Luna furrowed her brow, bewildered. "How did you know-"

"I know a lot of things, Luna." The Grandmother said with one eye cracked open and her brow creeping upwards. She paused and closed her eye before she hummed lowly. "I even know your future."

Before Luna could ask anything about her future, the Grandmother barked at her, "And don't even ask me to tell you your future Luna. If I told you what you would learn on your mission to save Ultris now, your foolishness would lead you to your death in under three hours!"

Luna paled as her eyes widened in fear. She didn't want to believe the old woman, but a part of her knew she was right. Whatever life-threatening thing she would learn on her mission would have to wait. However, she couldn't decide what scared her more, the possibility of being dead in three hours, or learning secrets that could bring her to her death.

The ancient woman opened her eyes and shrugged. "Don't worry, there's a fifty-fifty shot that you'll survive your journey with that _dashing_ captain," The Grandmother said, grinning.

Luna gave her a blank stare with her mouth hanging open like a broken gate. "Um, I think you got the wrong-"

"Oh, shut it, Luna, we have pressing matters to be discussed in the short amount of time that we have," The Grandmother interrupted.

Grumbling, Luna reminded herself that she came here to receive guidance. Even though she wanted to know more about her future, she knew the Grandmother couldn't tell her. She quickly regained her composure and nodded.

"I agree, which is why-"

The Grandmother, who was sitting on the ground with her staff laying next to her, interrupted her again, "Luna, when are you going to do it?"

"Going to do what?" She asked, looking at her questionably.

"Well, it's obvious that you are not going to be in _this_ form when you break them out," The Grandmother said, pointing her finger at Luna. "And I don't think you'll want to reveal your true self right away. So, I'll ask the question again, when are you going to do it?"

Luna stared at the ground, contemplating what she was going to do. She hadn't gotten that far in her plan. She didn't know if the Jedi Council would let her join their army. However, a part of her didn't want to tell anyone her true identity.

If Luna changed into her true self, she would be connected to the Force once again. If she did that, Hecate would finally realize that she was still alive. She would hunt her down, kill her, and all those around her. She didn't care if the Dark Jedi killed her, but she couldn't let her kill anyone else. If Luna showed her true self, then Hecate would be another problem for the Jedi and the Clone Troopers to deal with if they stood in her way.

Luna knew she would have to reveal her true self at one point; when Nixa Katari wouldn't be enough to save everyone. Looking up at the Grandmother, she answered, "I would reveal myself in a great time of need. A time when they need Luna Starborn more than Nixa Katari."

The ancient woman nodded. "Good answer." She slowly stood up and minced toward Luna. "When you're ready, you can change into this."

The Grandmother tapped the center of the Light Amulet. Once she pulled her finger back, the necklace began to glow. The soft glow began to swiftly cover Luna's clothes. As she watched the pendant curiously, she felt her armor shift into soft robes. Once the glow faded away, she gasped when she saw her armor was replaced with Gray Jedi entire.

The soft, white, shirt hugged her body comfortably. It's v-neck collar barely showed any cleavage. Its long sleeves had diamond-shaped holes running from her shoulders to her wrist. A white, leather belt with a circular buckle hung around her waist. Underneath it was a white kama with golden lining. The front covered her thighs and reached down past her knees in the back. Hanging from her belt buckle was a strip of golden cloth that went down to her knees. The end of the cloth was cut into a point. Covering her legs were soft, light gray leggings. The white boots had a piece of armor covering her shins. Looking at the entire outfit, Luna realized it looked like her mother's robe.

"It looks...amazing," Luna whispered in awe.

The Grandmother nodded. "Your mother would have wanted you to wear it."

"I didn't even know the amulet could do this," Luna said, shocked by the Light Amulet's power. She tapped the center of the necklace, causing the glow on her clothes to return. After a few seconds, her clothes changed back into her Amazon armor.

The Grandmother chuckled. "The amulet does have a lot of hidden abilities."

The Grandmother's gaze immediately fell to the Light Amulet. Her eyebrow hurried together as she narrowed her eyes at the pendant. "Speaking of hidden abilities..."

She gave it a curious look as she gently grabbed the pendant and examined it for a couple of seconds. Her ancient light gray eyes squinted as she turned the necklace over. Luna reached to touch the amulet, but the grandmother harshly slapped her hand.

"Ow!" Luna whined, shaking her hand.

"Don't try to touch the Amulet while I'm examining it, Starborn." The Grandmother said sternly.

Luna watched curiously as the Light Amulet glowed in the Grandmother's hands. Her eyes flashed white and gold for a moment before she closed them. Luna gave her an odd look when she began to mumble under her breath. When the ancient woman opened her light gray eyes, her mouth formed a grin.

"Well, this should get interesting..." The Grandmother laughed, letting go of the Light Amulet.

"What should get interesting?" Luna questioned, raising an eyebrow.

The Grandmother turned around and gave her a mischievous look. "Oh, nothing. It was just some useless information about your future," The Grandmother chuckled as she continued to walk away.

Luna rolled her eyes. ' _Useless information my ass.'_

Luna grabbed the Light Amulet and studied the strange pendant. How could the Grandmother know so much of the future just by holding it? A twinge of jealousy formed in her stomach. She wished she could do that. Looking back up, she realized the Grandmother was walking farther away from her.

"Wait!" Luna called, running towards her.

The ancient woman turned around and shot her an annoyed look. She grumbled something about being too old to deal with endless nonsense, and Luna didn't blame her.

The Grandmother had been alive before Queen Ulta's reign which was about five thousand years ago. She had to deal with the Monarch War, Xarxes' Assassin, and all of the past queens of Ultris.

"Is that it? You're not going to say some nonsense phrase and just disappear? You're just going to walk away?" Luna questioned in disbelief.

"You know those 'nonsense phrases' that I tell people are actually helpful, right?" The Grandmother exasperated.

"I know, but-"

"Shut it, Padawan." The Grandmother snapped, giving her a stern glare.

Luna clenched her jaw. She never liked being called a Padawan; it reminded her of the fact that she never had her Trial to become a Gray Jedi Knight. When her parents were killed, The Grandmother refused to be her new master. The ancient Gray Jedi claimed Luna knew more than enough to pass her trials.

"You know it's hard trying to help you because of how complex your future is," The Grandmother confessed.

"Huh?"

"You can choose so many different paths that can affect the entire galaxy, Luna," She explained.

"The entire galaxy?" Luna shouted, shocked.

"Shush! The entire galaxy stuff will be much later."

"Maybe we could talk about it now?" Luna said, almost pleading.

"No," The Grandmother replied sternly. "Because of these different paths, it's hard to know what to say to you. I could say one thing and it could lead not only to your demise but the people of Ultris as well."

A wave of fear washed over Luna. She began to take deep breaths to calm herself down. No matter how hard she tried, she still couldn't process what the Grandmother said. If she fell then Ultris would too. She clenched her fists and made a promise that she wouldn't let her planet die.

The Grandmother gently patted her shoulder and smiled. "Oh, don't worry about it too much, Luna. I have faith in you."

Luna ran her fingers through her thick hair. "How am I not supposed to worry about this?"

The Grandmother walked behind her and sighed. "Luna, you must listen to the ones around you, remember your teachings, and trust the Force. Do all of this, and you'll prevail. If you don't, then you and Ultris will surely fall."

Luna contemplated her words and took a deep breath. The Grandmother's wise words surprisingly put her at ease.

"Thank you, Grandmother," Luna said, turning around.

The ancient woman was nowhere in sight.

———————————

About an hour after Luna's conversation with the Grandmother, her team had arrived. The sun had sunk past the horizon long before their arrival. The white, full moon lit up the night sky along with the millions of stars that were spread across it. The air grew colder the longer she was out in the field. The golden grass had turned into a shining silver as it did every night on Ultris. She was admiring the peacefulness and beauty of her planet when Helena spoke behind her.

"So, Luna, what's the plan?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips.

Luna stood up slowly and turned around to face her team. The four of them watched her intently as she walked towards them. She had finalized her breakout plan in her time alone in the field. She was sure everyone would be able to escape the city, but there was a small possibility that her team would be left behind if they. She was sure if they were fast enough, they would be able to escape too.

"Before I tell you guys, I need to know if-"

"Luna," Nari interrupted, "we know what you're going to say. We know the risks and we're in."

Luna eyed them in disbelief. "Are you guys serious? You'll be risking your lives."

Zaria laughed. "Well, that's kinda part of our job."

Emmie nodded in agreement. "And we swore to protect Ultris, and that's what we are going to do."

Luna gave them a blank stare. A thousand thoughts ran through her head, and all of them said every single risk about their decision. She didn't want them to do this, but she knew I couldn't do it without them. They had become her family and she didn't want to lose them like she lost her parents.

"Wow, I did not expect that." Luna gasped.

"Okay, so what's the plan?" Helena asked impatiently.

Luna rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. Her plan wasn't the craziest one she came up with; she came up with a lot worse before.

"Well, the plan involves some knock out gas, an EMP, and some very fast Stormpedes.


	8. Rex: Escaping the City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The GAR Officers escape Ultris's Capital, but with a price.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment!

The Ultrisians are nice people, General Skywalker said.

They won't trick them and keep them captive, he said.

Well, he was kriffin' wrong.

Rex knew something bad was going to happen when General Kenobi and General Skywalker got the message from the Jedi Council to go to Ultris. He told Skywalker his concerns when they arrived and the general assured him that nothing would happen. When they landed on the platform and exited their ship, Rex's paranoia left him when he met Captain Katari. He didn't see any hint of deceit in her. However, his worried thoughts returned when they were led into the throne room.

Rex knew something was off once he saw the guards in the room. Their hands were on their weapons as if they were ready to attack. Once the Queen spoke, he could tell they had fallen into a trap. When the fight broke out, Rex noticed Katari frozen before the throne, bewildered by the sudden attack. She didn't know they planned on capturing them. However, the thought disappeared when she threatened to take Ahsoka's life if they didn't surrender.

Rex glared at the guards and Captain Katari as they were dragged to the prison level. Once Captain Katari was on her way to leave, he saw her cold face turn into one of sorrow. Before Rex could get hit by the guards, he turned around and was led to his prison cell with Cody.

Cody and Rex had been in the cold cell for nearly twelve hours since the incident. Rex couldn't get Katari out of his head during that time. That look she gave him before she left. Rex knew she was planning something and it had to deal with them. He started to pace as he began, getting lost in his thoughts.

"Will you stop pacing?" Cody said annoyingly from the other side of the cell.

The commander was sitting against the cold, damp wall in their cell. Next to him was a filthy, brown toilet and sink. Both were covered in rust and had green spots all over them. Rex rolled his eyes and looked to his left at the two guards stationed right outside the ray-shielded doorway. They occasionally gave the two clones quick glances and snickered at each other.

"It helps me think," Rex shot back.

One of the guards turned around and slammed his fist against the wall. "Hey! Be quiet in there!"

Cody and Rex rolled their eyes. Rex walked over and leaned against the wall across from Cody, who was glaring daggers at the guards. Rex rested his eyes and tried to come up with an escape plan.

Rex opened his eyes when he heard a loud thump outside the cell. He peered outside the cell and spotted one of the guards lying unconscious on the ground. Before the other guard could say a word, a giant fist collided with his face, knocking him out before he hit the ground.

The attacker, who was a giant woman, stood in front of the doorway and cracked her knuckles. Rex shot Cody a confused glance before the commander mouthed, _"I have no idea."_

"What a bunch of wimps," The giant woman mused, placing her hands on her hips.

A smaller and thinner girl walked up to the guards and nudged their arms with her foot. "Yeah, they don't make them like they used to." The smaller girl said, sounding rather unimpressed.

"Zaria, Nari, we don't have time for chit-chat," Captain Katari's voice hissed.

Captain Katari pushed past them and pressed the button to deactivate the ray shield. Once it was down, Cody and Rex cautiously stepped towards the door. The smaller girl, who Rex assumed was Nari, stepped to the side of the door and bent over. When she stood back up their helmets were in her hands. Nari tossed the helmets to them.

Captain Katari stepped into the cell once the clone officers put their helmets on. The taller woman, Zaria, walked into the cell and gave them back our blasters. As they placed their weapons back into their holsters, Rex spotted the Jedi's lightsabers attached to Katari's belt.

Katari activated the comlink on her wrist. "Helena, Emmie, we have the Clone Troopers. We are getting the Jedi now." She said quietly into the comlink.

"Got it, we have the knock out gas bombs in place up here." A calm voice replied.

Captain Katari nodded and motioned for them to follow her. She quietly led the clones down the dimly lit hallway as the other two women threw the unconscious guards into the cell and locked them in there. The two women followed behind the clones when Captain Katari turned left into the main hallway.

The large hallway was completely deserted. There weren't any guards patrolling it or stationed in front of the smaller hallways that led to more cells. Rex figured Captain Katari and her team had knocked them out and hid them in the cells.

"Will you guys hurry up?" Hissed a voice from Katari's comlink. "It's cold as fratz out here."

Katari sighed and rolled her eyes as they arrived at the hallway the generals and commander were in. She crouched down and signaled them to do the same. Rex leaned over her shoulder and peered down the hallway.

A large, dark-skinned man stood guard between the two cells the Generals and commander were locked in. The man wasn't dressed like the other guards. He didn't wear a helmet, instead, his head was completely shaved; scars covered his body. He wore a simple white shirt and pants with thin, brown lines running down the front and back. Rex squinted to make out the print on the man's shirt; it read, _Control Unit - 669._ Covering his scarred hands were brown, padded gloves and he wore a pair of brown, heavy duty boots.

Rex peered at the turquoise mechanism attached to the back of his neck to try to figure out what it was. The device resembled a scorpion with its stinger attached to the back of his head. Its legs were wrapped around the man's neck. Yellow, glowing lines pulsed on the back of the device as it gave off a low hum. Rex was horrified to see the man's face completely emotionless. All of the color was drained from it and his eyes were so dull that the captain thought he was dead.

"Hold on, Helena," Katari whispered harshly into the com. "We're getting the Jedi now. Zaria just needs to knock out the Control Unit."

Zaria cracked her knuckles and said that she couldn't wait to give the Control Unit a piece of her mind again.

"Control Unit?" Rex questioned, glancing down at Katari

"The mind control device around the guy's neck," Nari whispered behind him.

Rex's eyes widened, _'They had mind control technology?'_

Nari caught Rex's surprised look and started to explain. "It's a severe punishment on Ultris. Basically, it wipes all of the person's emotions until they can't feel anything."

"This guy right here," Katari pointed at the man, "he was a mass murderer. Burned down two villages in the south, killed everything that breathed in both of them, and bombed a mall in the city. In total, he killed 156 people and left 30 in critical condition."

Cody and Rex flashed them a horrified look. The women didn't seem phased by the man's past, except for Captain Katari. Her stoic expression quickly dropped and turned into one of regret and sorrow.

"Some say that he went insane after venturing into The Grave of Xarxes," Nari whispered to the clone officers.

"The Grave of Xarxes?" Cody questioned, shooting her an odd look.

"I'll give the history lesson later. We have bigger things to worry about now," Captain Katari said with her usual stoic look back on her face. She waved the giant woman forward. "Zaria, you're up."

Zaria cracked her neck as she stepped into the hallway. She shot the Control Unit a death glare before she thumped her fist against her chest and growled, "This is for all the innocent people you killed, you sociopath."

Zaria let out a roaring battle cry and charged at the mass murderer. The man turned, letting out a confused grunt before Zari dropped kicked him in the head. The Control Unit fell backwards and landed on the ground roughly. With a war cry that would send a battalion of battle droids running, Zari quickly got up and tackled the man when he tried to stand up and fight. She began to repeatedly punch the man in a furious rage while yelling for her Captain to get the Jedi out.

Rex turned to Cody, who was probably thinking the same thing that he was.

These women were _insane._

Captain Katari shot Nari a concerned look as she stood up to run over to the Jedi's cells, "You think she's still mad about last time?"

"I dunno, maybe?" Nari answered sarcastically as the two officers got up and followed the Ultrisians to the cells.

"Last time?" Rex asked from behind them.

"Yeah, this guy really took a number on her before Katari was able to subdue him. Zaria has been wanting a rematch ever since," Nari quickly explained.

Once they got the cells, Katari shut off the ray shield. Rex peered inside the two cells, seeing Kenobi watching Zaria beating the Control Unit senseless in horror. Skywalker, on the other hand, was just shocked. The generals looked at Katari suspiciously; she reassured them that her team were trying to help them escape. After the captain gave them their lightsabers back, she pulled them out of the cells and ordered Zari to put the Control Unit in the prison.

Zari huffed and stood up. She grabbed the unconscious man and hauled his blood covered body into the cell. The blood on her knuckles stained the switch for the ray shield when she slammed her fist against it.

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow when he saw the man's beaten state. "Don't you think that was a little excessive?"

"Actually, it was necessary," Zaria said in a "matter of fact" tone. "The Control Device around his neck will keep him conscious. I had to keep on hitting him until his body gave out."

Obi-Wan continued to stare at her, horrified by the vile Ultrisian Device.

Katari walked over to Ahsoka's cell and deactivated the ray shield. Ahsoka eyed her cautiously, most likely remembering what Katari did to her in the throne room.

"Katari!" Helena, Rex assumed, hissed from the com. "I swear to Ulta if you keep me waiting out here for five more minutes I will throw you off this platform."

"Well, she seems lovely," Obi-Wan said sarcastically.

Captain Katari motioned for them to follow her as she ran back into the main hallway.

"We're coming, Helena. We have the Jedi and the Clone Troopers. We will be up there in three minutes." She informed them as they came up to the turbo lift.

She opened the doors and ushered them inside. Zaria and Nari stepped in first, followed by the Jedi and the clone officers. Captain Katari stepped in last and pressed the button to take them to the landing platform. Once the doors closed, she turned around and placed her hands behind her back.

"Jedi, the next part of the plan depends on you," She said calmly.

"Why should we trust you?" Anakin growled, stepping forward.

Captain Katari did not flinch nor did she even bat an eye at General Skywalker. She continued to look straight ahead as she took in his harsh words.

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan scolded.

Anakin turned to Obi-wan and pointed at Captain Katari. "She threatened to take Ahsoka's life!"

"I was trying to stop the fighting!" She snapped before she realized she raised her voice. She glanced down in shame.

When Anakin was silent, she defended herself in a calm voice. "I didn't want to threaten her life, but if I didn't the guards would've killed all of you." She turned to Ahsoka and bowed her head in shame. "Padawan Tano, I deeply apologize for what happened in the throne room. I just want you to know I would have rather taken my life to stop the fighting. Right now I want to save you and your comrades so I can save my home from the Separatists."

Rex admired her courage and selflessness. She deeply cared for her planet, just like he did for Kamino. If Katari escaped with them, Rex would bet that they would become close friends.

Ahsoka nodded, smiling, "I forgive you, Captain Katari. I know the Republic will do everything they can to save Ultris."

"Thank you, Commander Tano," Captain Katari smiled.

Rex glanced over at General Skywalker, who seemed annoyed that he had to be nice to the Ultrisian officer.

"I hope you can trust me more in the future, General Skywalker."

After Obi-Wan jabbed him in the ribs with his elbow, Skywalker mumbled a "sure" before Nari pointed out that they were almost to the platform.

"Fratz," The Captain hissed under her breath,"Jedi, the two other members of my team have planted knockout gas bombs along the platform. When they go off can you make a path the teleporter pad? It will be right ahead of us once we exit the turbolift."

"We can do that," Obi-Wan said, nodded at Anakin and Ahsoka.

"Great, once we get the pad Nari will need some cover so she can put in the coordinates."

"I can cover her," Ahsoka volunteered, smiling at Nari.

Katari turned to the clone officers, "Captain Rex and Commander Cody, I'll need you two to watch the west doors. General Crux will most likely come out of those doors once the knockout gas clears up. Got it?"

"Yes, ma'am." Rex nodded, getting out his blaster and cocking it.

Her eyes lingered on him for a few seconds until she turned to Nari. "Once Nari gets all of us teleported, she will activate an EMP which will shut down the platform and fry the teleportation logs so they can't locate us."

Nari reached into her jacket and pulled out a dark purple, oval-shaped device that was about the size of her head. On the side of the EMP was a light purple, pixel skull and below it was a white button. Nari began to toss it in her hand.

"I can't wait to use this thing," Nari grinned as she continued to toss it.

Katari rolled her eyes and turned around, preparing herself for the awaiting skirmish. Pulling out a thin, silver bar about as long as her forearm from her back holster, she informed them that they would be there in a couple of seconds. While the Jedi readied themselves to make a path, Cody eyed Nari as she tossed the EMP in her hands.

"I don't think you should toss that."

Nari narrowed her eyes at the Commander, "I do what I want Mr. Tight Ass."

Rex stifled a laugh.

" _Nari_ ," Katari growled sternly.

"Sorry," She mumbled before pausing. "I meant to say, 'I do what I want _Commander_ Tight Ass'."

"Nari!" Katari shouted.

Everyone in the turbolift, besides Cody and Captain Katari, started to laugh. Once the doors slid open, however, their laughing ceased.

Outside of the doors, two women, one with white hair and the other with deep brown hair, stood guard. The brown-haired woman, that Rex assumed was Helena, held a trigger in her hands.

It was dark outside with only the moon and the lights on the platform guiding their way. The grass in the fields was shining silver in the moonlight. A chilling breeze blew into them as we exited the turbolift.

Ahead of them was the circular teleporter platform that had six, white circles on it. In front of the platform was the coordinates computer.

The loud _thuds_ of running footsteps alerted Rex of the guards running towards them. Katari turned her head to Helena, nodding her head to for her to activate the bombs. Once Helena pressed the button, explosions shook the platform as gas spread throughout the platform. The Jedi surrounded them and raised their hands to use the Force to push back the gas. They quickly ran to the teleporter pad when the Jedi formed a path to it.

Once they got the teleporter platform, they stationed themselves to where they were supposed to be. Cody and Rex knelt in the front of the platform and trained their guns on the west door ahead of them. Captain Katari stood in front of us with the silver bar in her hand. When she pressed a button on the side, the bar extended into a bow with a blue, plasma string.

The generals stood in front of us with their lightsabers ignited when the wind blew away the knockout gas on the platform. Nari began typing in the coordinates as Ahsoka activated her lightsaber in front of her. Before Emmie and Zaria placed themselves on the side of the Jedi, Zaria handed Emmie two large pistols.

The turbo-lift doors finally opened when the gas finally cleared up, revealing the unconscious guards laying on the ground. Two rows of three guards marched out of the turbolift and aimed their guns at them. Behind the soldiers was General Sierra Crux. The doors closed behind her as she sent Captain Katari a death glare.

"Finally," General Crux breathed, forming a crooked grin, "I have a reason to kill you and your repulsive team." General Crux took out her blaster and aimed it at Katari, "KILL THEM!"

General Crux's soldiers began firing at them; their red blasts easily deflected off of the Jedi's Lightsabers. The Amazon Team, besides Nari, began firing away along with Cody and Rex. More guards began to come out of the turbolift. The ones that were shot down would be replaced with two more guards. Rex knew they would be overrun if they stayed out there any longer.

"Nari, you need to hurry up!" Captain Katari shouted as she drew back her bowstring.

A blue arrow quickly formed in her hand. She held it for a few seconds longer, letting the glowing arrow glow brighter. When she released it, the arrow exploded in front of General Crux and her soldiers. The enemy fire ceased when a large cloud of dust enveloped them.

"The coordinates are in! Jedi! Troopers! Get in one of the white circles now!" Nari ordered as she pulled out the EMP.

Rex stood in one of the circles once he slid his blasters in their holster. The circles glowed when the Republic officers were all in them. There was an empty one to his left.

General Crux marched out of the thick dust cloud while yelling orders at the guards behind to fire at the traitors. Some of them even began to run towards us with swords in their hands. Nari quickly threw a grenade at them. After the explosion, only seven guards and General Cruz were left. More kept coming out of the turbolift.

"Luna, get in the circle," Helena ordered in a protective tone when she turned to face Captain Katari.

Rex glanced at the two, bewildered, _'Luna?'_

Hearing the _hisses_ of multiple doors opening, Rex pulled out his blasters and trained them on Ultrisian soldiers running into the skirmish. Nari and Cody followed Rex's lead and fired on the enemy reinforcements. Their armor was thick; it took multiple shots to put a single dent in them. Rex knew they were running out of time; they weren't going to make it if they stayed there any longer.

Katari grabbed Helena's arms with her trembling hands, "No! We're sending them and then we're leaving. We can do th-"

"No, we can't, Luna!" Helena shouted with tears in her eyes.

"Yeah, as much as I hate to say it, but if we're going to win this fight some of us will have to lose it," Nari yelled after throwing another grenade at the guards.

"We knew the risks, Luna!" Emmie called as Helena shoved Katari into the circle next to Rex

"It's up to you to save Ultris!" Zaria hollered. "We know you can do it!"

Helena ran up to the datapad and hovered her fist above it. She stared Katari down as she was daring her move an inch off the pad.

"I'm not leaving without you!" Katari screamed with a tear threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"Yes, you are."

Helena activated the teleporter.

Katari let out a heartbreaking cry as a bright light formed around their bodies. Rex looked down at his hands, seeing that they were encased in the warm glow. His stomach churned when he couldn't breathe.

The bright glow blinded Rex's vision as the gunfire, the explosions, and the dying screams melted away. He felt as if he was flying for a moment until his body was thrown around by an invisible force. Even through his own screaming, he could make out the shouts coming from the Jedi and Cody.

Rex was thankful that his torture ended quickly. The bright glow vanished quickly, letting him see the silver blades of grass below him as he fell. He didn't have time to brace himself before he collided with the ground with a loud _thud._

A strong wave of nausea hit him like a blaster shot after he turned over to lay on his back. His view of the night sky darkened as his body succumbed to the sickening feeling. His body ached; he hoped he didn't break any ribs from the fall. It was distant, but he heard the groans from his comrades around him. At least they survived the teleportation trip.

As the darkness closed in, Rex wondered if they had a chance of escaping the planet.


	9. Luna: A New Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna faces her team's sacrifice and continues her mission to save the GAR Officers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long to post! Don't forget to comment!

Luna fell to her knees after they were teleported to the southern hemisphere. The glow on her body faded away as cold tears streamed down her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around her chest when her breathing quickly turned into hiccups and sobs.

_ ‘This is my fault…’ _

She knew that her team - her family - would be killed or be Controlled for their treason. She couldn't stand the thought of them being punished for what she begged them to do. It should have been her, not them. She was their leader, she should have taken the fall, but of course, they are too stubborn to let her.

_ "We knew the risks, Luna!" _ Emmie's voice echoed, almost as if her mind was scolding her for thinking that way.

Luna slowly let her arms fall from her chest, letting her hands travel to the soft ground. She wiped her tears away with one hand while the other grasped a few strands of the silver grass. She knew she couldn't just sit there and cry for them. Crying for her team wasn't going to save them or Ultris. If she was going to save them, she would have to stand up and fight for them. She knew it would be what they would want her to do.

_ "It's up to you to save Ultris! We know you can do it!" _ Zaria's voice resonated in Luna’s mind.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Luna stood up and faced the dark, northern sky. She clenched her fists, letting a wave of calmness wash over her. 

"I promise you guys," Luna vowed, "I will save you and the rest of Ultris if its the last thing I do."

Luna stood in silence, letting herself take in everything that happened to keep herself calm. A loud snort shook her out of her trance only seconds later. Turning around, she quickly remembered the unconscious Jedi and Clone Troopers that laid behind her.

She knew there was a possibility they would pass out, the first time being teleported gave people a strong wave of nausea. She bet at least one person was going to throw up once they woke up.

She turned to the stormpedes that Zaria gathered hours before and groaned when she only saw three. Luna spotted the metal post that was uprooted from the ground and figured that the other three stormpedes must of ran away.

The three, eight-legged horses that remained were investigating the Jedi and the Clone Troopers. A white stormpede with orange diamond-shaped markings nudged Obi-Wan's face with its sharp, beak-like mouth. A black stormpede with blue and white streaks running down its back was studying Anakin with its onyx eyes. It leaned down and took a big whiff of Anakin's hair before sneezing on his face. Still unconscious, Anakin's face frowned as the stormpede shook its neck, making the foot-long fin on its neck wobble. The stormpede walked over to Ahsoka, who was laying near Anakin and began to smell her.

Luna rolled her eyes at the two stormpedes and made her way over to Blue Jay, who was standing over Rex. Blue Jay wasn’t her pet, more like they were old friends.

Luna placed her hands on the sides of his rough face and softly pulled the navy blue stormpede away from Rex with his black leather bridle. Once Blue Jay was a few paces away from the unconscious Clone Captain, Luna moved her hand to give him a scratch behind his ears. Like all stormpedes, Blue Jay had four ears, the top two sticking up curiously over the small ones beneath them. Sighing, Luna ran her fingers down the two white stripes that started under his eyes and snaked down to his tails, which had spikes growing out of their fins.

Running her gaze over the black, leather saddle, Luna admired the silver threading and brushed some dust off of it. She was fortunate that her team found the old saddles in one of the castle's old storage rooms. Even though the saddles hadn't been used in decades, they were in decent shape. The leather on the straps was a little worn, but other than that they were in perfect condition.

Looking past Commander Cody, who was still lying unconscious next to Obi-Wan, Luna stared at the metal stake. The original plan was to have two riders on four stormpedes. Luna and Helena were going to be single riders so Luna could lead the group and Helena could trail them just in case Ultrisian soldiers tried to sneak up on them. With only six people and three stormpedes, Luna knew she was going to have a riding buddy. 

She eyed the captain with a blush creeping up on her face, _ ‘Maybe it won't be that bad…’ _

Blue Jay brought her attention back to him as he studied Rex suspiciously, letting out a bored snort and stepping back towards the unconscious man. He brought his head down to the ground and began to sniff the captain. Luna watched in amusement as Blue Jay pushed Rex's helmet off of his handsome face with his nose. Blue Jay made a surprised noise, shocked that a person was under the helmet

Chuckling at Blue Jay, Luna let her eyes linger on Captain Rex for a few seconds. She couldn’t stop letting her mind wander about the attractive man. His golden-brown eyes were absolutely stunning against his dark skin and his cheekbones were probably sharp enough to cut diamonds. His blonde hair, which was a rarity on Ultris, made him stand out even more.

Luna knew there were millions of other men that looked exactly like him, but something about him was different. She could tell that there was something special about him. Luna wasn’t one to believe in fate, but part of her believed that they were destined to meet each other. 

Luna was quickly brought out of her trance when Blue Jay smacked Rex's face with the side of his beak-shaped mouth. The captain’s head was knocked to the side. He was still out cold. Blue Jay snorted in annoyance and whacked Rex again. Luna hissed at him to stop hurting the poor man, but the dumb stormpede rolled his eyes and laid down next to Rex's face. Luna spotted the mischievous glint in Blue Jay's eyes as he stared at the clone.

"Don't do it," Luna warned, giving Blue Jay a harsh glare.

The stormpedes snorted and moved his head closer to Rex's face, sticking out his long, plum-colored tongue along the way. Before Luna could pull him away, the brat ran his tongue against the captain’s cheek. Rex's face scrunched up as he woke up. He groaned in annoyance when he opened his eyes. He made a confused noise before processing Blue Jay's tongue on his face and let out an irritated shout.

Rex pushed Blue Jay away from him and slowly sat up. He clutched his stomach with one hand and made an odd face, probably experiencing nausea from teleporting. He groaned again, looking around to find the other Republic Officers unconscious and the two stormpedes staring at him curiously with their heads tilted.

Rex turned to Luna with confusion wiped over his face. He blinked several times - probably seeing double - and moved to stand. Before Luna could tell him not to, he jumped to his feet. The blood drained from his face as he started to fall. She ran to him and caught him before he collided with the ground. She grabbed his arms as he leaned into her, groaning.

"Wha-What happened?" he asked, gasping for air.

Luna slowly lowered him to his knees to help his nausea as he clutched her forearms. The captain continued to take deep breaths. Much to Luna’s confusion, the Light Amulet under her armor began to heat up the closer we got. His eyes were half-closed when she started to explain what happened.

"We were teleported to the southern hemisphere," Luna said calmly. "The Jedi, Commander Cody and you passed out once we arrived. The nausea you are experiencing will go away soon."

Rex looked up at her letting her see his beautiful golden brown eyes. His grip tightened as he tried to regain his balance. 

"How long have we been here?" He asked, standing up slowly.

He rubbed his forehead, letting his nausea pass, and felt Blue Jay’s slobber covering his cheeks. Grimacing, he wiped it off with his gloved hand, sending a death glare to the childish stormpede. In return, Blue Jay opened his mouth, attempting to smile innocently at the captain, and made a laughing noise. After a second, Blue Jay stuck his tongue out the side of his seemingly toothless mouth.

"About fifteen minutes," Luna answered.

Rex paused for a moment - either to let the nausea pass or to question if he should ask. Luna wasn’t sure. 

"And your team?"

Luna’s heart ached. She looked down, avoiding eye contact with him.

"They didn't make it," She replied, in a regretful voice. She held back a sob and wiped away the tears that threatened to run down her cheek. "My team and I are now labeled traitors of Ultris. They will either be killed or..."

Luna didn't want to say how her team would be punished; it was too painful to think about. Even though she accepted and honored their sacrifice, it was still hard for her to think about all the pain and suffering they would go through.

Seeing her pained expression, Rex gently placed his hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw sympathy in his eyes.

"Controlled," she finished, turning away from his gaze.

"I'm sorry about your team," Rex said, slightly squeezing her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.

Luna softly pushed his hand off her shoulder. She knew he was trying to comfort her, the reminder of their actions felt like salt in her wounded heart. She knew her guilt for their sacrifice would haunt her, just like her parents' deaths did. She could've done something to save her team and her parents, but they pushed her behind them and they paid the price...and she had to live with the guilt.

Luna peered down to her kama where she hid the small datapad and comlink that Allura had given her. They were attached to her belt and rested on her hip underneath the fabric.

The comlink gave her another thing to worry about. Allura had given it to her so she could give her intel that she could get her hands on. If she were to be caught, her status as a princess would not protect her from punishment. Sierra could get away with just about anything, but that privilege didn’t extend to Allura. Queen Pandora did not give a single turf about Allura and whatever she did. The only people that cared about her were Luna and possibly Sierra as strange as it may sound.

"It was their choice," Luna finally said, looking back up at Rex. "If it wasn't for them, all of us would be dead."

She peered over Rex's shoulder where the Jedi and the commander were, noticing they were starting to wake up. They groaned as the nausea finally hit them. Before Luna made her way over to them, she turned to Rex and recited her promise to her team.

"And I won't let their sacrifice be vain. I will save my planet, even if it kills me," She said confidently, meeting his eyes.

Luna watched curiously as Rex's eyes widened in...awe? Was he surprised or impressed that Luna felt this way towards her planet? Maybe it was both...or maybe he thought she had a death wish (she probably did) and was going to die trying to save her people. She turned away from the captain, knowing that they had a bigger problem to deal with and made her way over to the Jedi and Commander Cody.

Obi-Wan sat up, rubbed his head and looked around in confusion. Anakin, on the other hand, was lying on the ground, his face screwed up as he clutched his stomach, moaning in discomfort. Beside him, his Padawan, Ahsoka, was standing up, not showing any signs of side effects of the teleportation. She stood with a grin while Cody sat next to Obi-Wan, trying not to throw up.

"That was awesome," Ahsoka said with her grin growing bigger. "We should always travel that way!"

The Generals and the Clone Troopers stared at Ahsoka as if she was clinically insane. Luna chuckled at the little torgruta's excitement. She didn't want to break the news to her that they wouldn't be able to teleport for a very long time. Luna had a feeling that the young padawan already knew.

"Again?" Cody exasperated with his hand covering his mouth and the other on his stomach. The orange and white stormpede behind him nudged his back, presumably looking for food. Cody turned around and his eyes widened in confusion when his gaze fell on the stormpede.

"We are never doing that again, Snips," Anakin claimed, standing up slowly.

"For once, I agree with Anakin. I am never doing that again." Obi-Wan said, standing up as well. Rex nodded in agreement while Cody lost control of his stomach next to the white and orange stormpede. Rex went over to Cody to help him get over his sickness.

Obi-Wan's gaze fell on the stormpedes and he trudged over to the white and orange one, studying it in curiosity. The stormpede tilted its head when Obi-Wan began to study it while he gave it a scratch behind the ears.

Anakin wiped the stormpede slobber off his face and raised an eyebrow. "Why is there slobber on my face?" Anakin questioned, looking at the black stormpede behind him in suspicion.

Luna pointed at the black stormpede, "He sneezed on you while you were unconscious."

Anakin gave the black stormpede a death glare and opened his mouth to yell at it. Before he could, the stormpede opened its mouth to reveal its large, retractable fangs and hissed at Anakin. Anakin yelped, flailing his arms and fell to the ground. He swiftly scooted away from the omnivore while the Jedi laughed at him and the clone troopers stared in shock.

"Is that thing going to eat me?" Anakin screamed in a mix of anger and concern, grabbing his lightsaber from his belt

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan shouted in aggravation.

Obi-Wan jumped between Anakin and the black stormpede and raised his arms. The stormpede retracted its teeth and gave Anakin a toothless grin. Dropping its grin, the stormpede turned around and began to eat the dry, silver grass. Anakin clipped his lightsaber to his belt and stood up.

"It's not going to eat you!" Asserted Luna, with a hint of annoyance in her tone. "They don't like to eat anything that stands on two legs anyway.” 

"I don't think Captain Katari would bring us here to be eaten by these..." Obi-Wan looked over at Luna questioningly, not knowing the name of the creature.

"Stormpedes.”

"Stormpedes," Obi-Wan finished.

Luna glanced over at Rex, who was helping Cody get back on his feet. The white and orange stormpede rubbed Cody's back with its head in a caring way. Rex placed Cody's arm over his shoulder so he could help him walk.

Ahsoka moved to stand next to her master as she eyed the stormpedes in confusion. 

"So why are we using these creatures and not speeders?" Ahsoka questioned, moving her gaze over to Luna.

Blue Jay moved to stand on the side of Luna, nudging her arm in hopes of getting a treat of some kind. She scratched him behind his ears as she explained.

"It's safer this way," She started. "If we were to use speeders they could activate the dead switch and blow up the speeders to kill us. It will be harder for them to track us if we take the stormpedes."

Luna moved her hand under Blue Jay's head and began to scratch under there. Her other hand started to pet his hard, leather head caringly. After a couple of seconds, she looked over Blue Jay's saddle and made sure his straps were tight enough. After making sure he was good to go, she made her way over to the white and orange stormpede to check its straps.

"Queen Pandora and General Crux will be sending out troops to find us soon. The soldiers will be riding speeders and will shoot to kill." She said, fixing a strap on the white and orange stormpede's bridle.

"Are the stormpedes going to be able to outrun the speeders?" Cody asked, moving away from Rex to stand on his own.

Luna paused, hesitating to answer them, "They should,"

All of them raised their brow, knowing that she wasn't sure about her answer. Stormpedes were fast, but they probably weren't as fast as a speeder. Their hard, leathery skin was thick and could protect them from blaster shots. They could possibly outrun the speeders, but not if there were two people on their backs weighing them down.

"You hesitated," Anakin pointed out. 

Luna sighed and moved to the black stormpede to check its gear. Her hands ran over every strap to make sure they were secure.

"Fine, I'm not exactly sure if they can outrun the speeders." Luna groaned, placing her forehead on the saddle. "If they can't, I will hold them off as long as I can while you guys get to the ship."

Luna lifted her head and turned to face them. All of them were looking at each other with unsettling looks. Rex glanced at her bow and her staff, shooting her a look of disbelief. 

"Katari, no offense, but you only have a staff and a bow," Rex said, gesturing to her weapons. "If you're going up against Ultrisian troops with speeders, you're going to need some help."

"I'll be fine as long as we stop at my," Luna froze, knowing she hadn't been there since  _ that _ day, "home."

The GAR Officers noticed her pained expression and gave her a concerning look. Rex stared at her as if he was trying to find out why she paused. He was suspicious of her past and Luna didn't blame him.

Luna didn't have time to visit her old home while she was with her team hours before escaping the city. She needed to go to get her lightsabers and Moira's Box that she accidentally left when Hecate found them. Her childhood home was hidden deep in the mountains and was luckily on their way to the Canyon of the Fallen. It would be a good place to rest since their journey to the canyon was going to be long. 

"Why do we have to go there?" Ahsoka questioned.

"I think the most important question is, where is the ship?" Anakin asked harshly.

Luna sighed and pulled out the datapad from under her kama. Turning it on, she activated the tracker and flipped it around so everyone could see where the ship was on the screen.

"The ship is in the Canyon of the Fallen which is about one hundred and forty clicks from here," Luna explained, moving her finger to point at the mountains on the screen. "My home is about half of the way there. I have to get something that should help us escape. If we travel fast enough we should be able to get to my home in about two hours."

Luna turned off the datapad and attached it to her belt to let it rest on her hip. 

Obi-Wan nodded. "Sounds good. Once we get to your home, we should rest for a bit before we leave for the canyon."

Everyone nodded in agreement as they walked to a stormpede. Obi-Wan and Cody went over to the white and orange stormpede. Anakin, much to his dismay, was dragged over to the black stormpede that sneezed on him by Ahsoka. Before they could mount their stormpedes, Luna turned to Obi-Wan.

"General Kenobi?" She called, getting his attention.

He turned around and faced her. "Yes?"

Luna bit her lip nervously. Out the corner of her eye, she spotted Rex staring at her lips for a split second before turning away with a slight blush. She quickly brought her attention back to the general

"Considering that we survive this, I was hoping that the Jedi Council would allow me to join the G.A.R.?"

Obi-Wan smiled, nodding. "I believe after what you did today, I think the Council will allow you to join, Captain Katari."

Luna bowed her head with a smile forming on her lips. "Thank you, General Kenobi."

Obi-Wan smiled and turned around to face the stormpede. After he climbed on, he helped Commander Cody get on behind him. Once Cody was on the stormpede's back, he placed his helmet over his head while Obi-Wan grabbed the reins. Anakin and Ahsoka were already on the black stormpede. Anakin was in control of the rein while Ahsoka sat backward on the saddle so her back was facing Anakin's.

For a second, Luna wondered who the captain was riding with. An embarrassed blush spread across her face when she realized he was riding with her. The Light Amulet beneath her armor pulsed with heat as her blush grew. 

Rex and Luna turned to face one another and gave each other an awkward smile. His helmet was in one arm while the other one scratched the back of his head. His gaze fell to the ground as she bit the inside of her cheek.

"I guess we're riding...together," Rex said awkwardly.

"I guess we are," Luna replied, getting on Blue Jay's back.

Rex quickly pulled his helmet over his face before Luna helped him up. Her hands clutched the reins after she helped get on the saddle. Rex scooted as far away from her as much the small saddle would allow him to make the trip less awkward. He sat with his hands uncomfortably at his sides, not knowing where he should place them.

"You're going to want to hang on to something, we're about to take off," Luna warned with a friendly smile.

"Um, yeah, of course." Rex stuttered, awkwardly placing his hands on her shoulders. He nodded once he was ready.

"Follow me! I'll lead us to my home!" Luna yelled, letting Blue Jay go full speed to the southern mountains.


	10. Luna: The House of Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna comes back to her home for the first time since her parents' murder. Her fears, guilt, and sorrow come back to haunt her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Don't forget to leave a comment! 
> 
> FYI this story is on my Wattpad, but it was originally in 1st POV (ew) and I have been editing chapters to change it to 3rd POV. Sorry, it's taking so long to edit, I have been busy with school!
> 
> Enjoy!

To say that the ride to Luna's childhood home was awkward was a complete understatement.

No one said a single word for the first hour, except for the occasional snarky comment from Anakin; it was either directed towards Obi-Wan or Luna. All of his snide remarks to Luna asked her if she knew where she was going as she led them through gray, rocky terrain. Luna simply rolled her eyes and told him that she grew up in the mountains. She knew the narrow passages like the back of her hand.

It didn't help that the awkward man behind her sat as far away as the saddle would let him. Whenever Rex accidentally lost his grip on her shoulders and grabbed onto her waist to steady himself on Blue Jay, he would stammer a 'sorry' as if he never properly talked to a woman before.

Luna didn't find the captain's sputtering annoying, she thought it was rather adorable. Rex was clearly a gentleman and she knew he wouldn't try anything. (The last guy who did received a punch in the face and a broken arm.) Whenever he stuttered his apologies, Luna couldn't help but smile, thinking how cute he was. She told him that he didn't need to apologize since it was bound to happen on the rough terrain they were on. But, being the gentleman that he obviously was, he kept on apologizing.

If the Light Amulet wasn't a powerful, Gray Jedi artifact, Luna would have ripped it off her neck halfway through the ride. The pendant grew with heat the longer she was closer to Rex. It wasn't hot enough to burn her, but it was defiantly going to leave a dark red mark on her chest. At one point, the burning pain became unbearable and she had to discreetly move the pendant. But she had to bear the pain since Rex was right behind her. She couldn't let him see the amulet or else he would ask questions. The torture finally ended once Rex lost his grip and grabbed onto her waist. The Light Amulet finally cooled down with a short, satisfied hum, that Rex unfortunately heard. He looked over her shoulder, confused, but didn't ask about it. 

It wasn't until they were close to her home, that the silence was broken.

They were trotting up a steep and narrow passage along the side of a mountain when Rex asked Luna a question. Dark green moss covered the rough ground and hung over the edge of the path. Below them, about seventy feet down was a large pond that she used to play in with her father. The pond reflected the sky like a mirror. The reflection showed the bright, silver moon, the countless stars in the sky, and the glowing peaks of the towering mountains ahead of them.

Luna's gaze lingered on the entrance to the Maze of the Guarding Mists that stood at the top of the path. No one knew if the maze was a natural part of the planet or if it was created long ago during Ulta's reign. The maze was part of a small section in the mountains. A dense, silvery fog lingered in the maze, making it impossible to get out of if someone got lost. 

Luna's parents took every precaution to keep her safe from Hecate when they hid her. Their house was built on the edge of the maze, overlooking a vast valley filled with thousands of flowers. The foggy maze was meant to slow down Hecate if she ever found the location of the house. However, on the day of her parents' died, the Dark Jedi proved that the maze was no match for her. 

"Your team," Rex spoke with curiosity. His voice was quiet enough so no one else would hear him, "they called you Luna. Why?"

Luna stiffened and gripped Blue Jay's rein's tighter. She scowled, remembering that her team had called her by her real name during the escape. She could feel him staring at her questionably under his helmet as she tried to figure out what she was going to tell him. She could either tell him the truth or she could pretend that it never happened. 

She was afraid if she told him the truth, a part of her would reconnect itself to the Force. Her parents warned her of Hecate's ability to sense someone through the Force. Her father explained to her that her presence would draw Hecate to her like a moth to a flame. She didn't want herself to reconnect in fear that Hecate would find her and kill anyone that stood in her way. She wanted to protect everyone from that monster. She wasn't going to let anyone else die.

Luna knew if she was allowed to fight in the Clone War with the GAR, she would have to go back to the Force eventually. She learned through her time as Nixa Katari that truth always came out one way or another. Her team lost their trust in her when she told them the truth after a deadly mission, she didn't want to break the captain's trust too when she would reveal the truth. She decided to tell him part of the truth so she could slowly tell who she truly was.

"Luna Starborn is my real name," Luna finally answered.

Luna released the breath she was holding as Rex shot her another questioning look. She nearly froze when she felt a small part of her return back to the Force. A comforting warmth flowed through her body as if the Light Side was calling her back. She shook her head, trying to ignore the feeling.

"Only my team and two other people know," She added quietly.

"Why did you create a fake name?" 

Luna took in a deep breath before answering him. She didn't want to explain what happened seven years ago; it brought back too much pain. She would tell everyone eventually, but she wasn't ready yet. She didn't need to add a psychotic Dark Jedi to their list of problems at the moment.

"That's a long and painful story," Luna murmured, shifting herself in the saddle.

She kept her gaze on her hands as they got closer to the top of the path. Luna knew Rex wanted to ask more questions, but after hearing the pain in her voice he went silent again. Her face slowly formed a frown as the tormenting images of the murder of her parents flashed through before me. Rex realized the pain she was in and cleared his throat to get her attention.

"I'm sorry," He said sympathetically, squeezing her shoulder to comfort her. "I shouldn't have asked. It's just-"

Luna turned to face Rex to interrupt him. "No, you had the right to ask."

"What?" Rex questioned, sounding rather surprised as they were getting closer to the top of the path.

"I would have asked the same question if I was in your situation," Luna said, giving him a slight smile. "After all, I am a complete stranger to you and you know nothing about me or my past."

Luna moved one hand to her shoulder, forgetting that Rex's hand was there for a split second and placed it on top of his. Her eyes widened in embarrassment and he tensed under her touch. The Light Amulet sent out a warm pulse throughout her body, making her cheeks flush. Luna quickly slid her hand off of his warm one and moved it to her arm. Behind Rex's shoulder, she could see Anakin and Obi-Wan shooting her a bewildered look.

"I will explain everything just not now," Luna promised in a low whisper, looking away from Rex. "We have to put our focus on escaping Ultris and not getting killed in the process. Also, please continue to call me Nixa Katari."

Rex nodded as they arrived at the top of the path. Luna pulled back on the reins gently, making Blue Jay slow down and stop. She raised her hand, forming it into a fist to signal the Jedi to stop. Once they did, she took a deep breath and gazed at the familiar oval-shaped entrance before her.

The stone opening in front of them was built into the side of the mountain. Beyond it was a mist-covered labyrinth of passages; most were narrow with towering walls, others were even underground and some were even on the tallest peaks of the mountains. In the moonlight, the fog seemed to glow a bright silver and almost looked thicker.

Even though it had been seven years, Luna still remembered the way to her childhood home. She wasn't scared about returning to her home but she was terrified that she would lose the Jedi on the way there. The fog was so thick that she could barely see five feet in front of her. If they took one wrong turn they could get hopelessly lost.

Luna turned around to face the Jedi and Clone Troopers. "We are very close to my home. Once we get there we can rest for a couple of hours and then head to the ship." 

"What is this place?" Cody questioned, eyeing the entrance leerily.

"The Maze of the Guarding Mists," Luna answered. 

"We have to go through  _ that _ ?" Anakin shouted, pointing at the fog seeping out of the entrance.

"Now Anakin, don't tell me you're afraid of a little fog," Obi-Wan teased, turning around to give Anakin a grin. Cody and Ahsoka laughed quietly.

"No!" Anakin defended, peering at the entrance cautiously, "It looks creepy." He muttered.

Luna pursed her lips and looked at the entrance.  _ "Well, he isn't wrong..." _

"Yeah, it looks like we can get easily lost in there," Ahsoka pointed out, looking over Anakin's shoulder.

Cody and Rex nodded in agreement.

"Not if you know the way," Luna said, trying to reassure them. "Travel slowly, stay close to me, and don't get lost," she warned.

Cody shrugged. "Sounds easy enough."

Luna turned back to the entrance. She softly nudged Blue Jay to walk into the entrance with the Jedi and clone troopers following closely. Once they passed under the opening, a chilling breeze blew into them, sending a shiver down her spine. The air in the seemingly endless maze was damp and cool.

Luna slightly turned her head to face Rex and shot him a grin. "You know, you're the lucky one."

"Oh really?" He said with amusement. "How so?"

"Well," Luna glanced back at the Jedi and commander. She could barely see them through the dense fog, "you're riding with me so you won't get lost."

Rex chuckled and looked back at Anakin, probably thinking that he would be the first person to wander away from the group. He turned around and took off his helmet, revealing a dazzling smile. A blush slowly crept onto her cheeks as he placed his helmet under his arm. Luna returned the smile while hoping that Rex would show his beautiful smile once more.

"Five credits says Skywalker gets lost," Luna said with amusement.

Rex grinned again, "You're on."

Once they passed through the opening, the fog cleared up a little to reveal three familiar paths in front of them. The one on the far left curved upwards to the tallest peak of the mountain. It was wider than the passage that they took to get there and it had less fog than the other two. The path in the middle led to a dark cave. Out of all of the passages, the cave was the easiest one to get lost in. Luna frowned, remembering the time she wandered in there when she was little and nearly got lost (luckily her father found her before she could). The slender trail on the right had smooth, towering rock walls that were about twenty-five feet tall with wisps of thick fog looming out of its entrance

Luna turned Blue Jay to head into the trail on the right before she motioned to Obi-Wan to follow her and he did the same for Anakin. She didn't want to shout in case of them being followed, even if there was a low chance they were.

"Why would anyone want to raise a child in this place?" Anakin questioned loud enough for Luna to hear him. 

"I wasn't raised in the maze," Luna quickly clarified. "My home is outside of it. We just have to get to the gateway."

The fog slowly consumed them as and they traveled farther on the path. Luna turned around, only being able to see the head of Obi-Wan and Commander Cody's stormpede. They were almost to her old home after they took another turn. 

Luna shouted to make sure Anakin and Ahsoka were still with them. To her slight disappointment, they were still following behind Obi-Wan and the commander.

"Great, I'm going to have to owe you five credits soon," Luna muttered jokingly.

Rex, who had attached his helmet to the saddle behind him, lean forward with a slight grin on his face. "Oh, are we almost there?"

"Yes," Luna grumbled, giving him a playful look. He chuckled and leaned back.

Luna peered ahead of them, seeing that the path branched off into five different ones. Two of the passages had green, thorny vines that covered their walls, making it difficult to travel through them. One of them, which was on the far left had large cracks spreading from the ground that travels up the top of the sides of the path. Running water echoed from one; that one led to a creek that she used to play in with her mother and father. The last one was normal with smooth walls and flog flowing out of it.

Luna told Rex that they were going down the last path. After informing Obi-Wan and Anakin, Luna had Blue Jay go down the path. Luna whispered to Rex that they were close to her home and the passage would take them directly to the gateway. After a few minutes had passed, they arrived at the end of the trail where the fog had cleared up.

The path ended in a small circular clearing with towering rock walls. Luna could barely see the light of the moon when she looked up. A tall stone rested against the wall in front of them. Carved into the center of the smooth rock was the Gray Jedi symbol. A wave of guilt crashed into her when she gazed upon the four-pointed star and the two wings surrounding. She grew up learning the Gray Jedi ways and being apart from the Force made her believe that she was rejecting everything she valued. 

_ "Never thought I would see the Gray Jedi symbol ever again..." _

Luna slid off of Blue Jay's saddle and looked up at the symbol. A chill traveled down her spine, knowing that the Jedi would know that symbol stood for. They could have demanded an explanation between her and the Gray Jedi. She hoped they wouldn't, she wasn't ready yet. 

Behind her, Obi-Wan and Anakin made their stormpedes stand next to Blue Jay and then slid off their saddles. Rex walked over to Luna with everyone else following him.

"Oh great, a dead end," Anakin said sarcastically as he stood next to Rex.

Out of the corner of her eye, Luna noticed Obi-Wan studying the symbol for a moment before glancing at her curiously.

_ "I'll explain later,"  _ Luna mouthed to the Jedi Master. He nodded, letting Luna breathe out in relief as she walked to the stone. A sense of dread formed in her, she would have to tell him everything later. 

Trying not to think of the conversation should have with Obi-Wan, She rolled her eyes at Anakin's comment, "It's not a dead end."

Luna gulped, knowing that she was standing in front of the stone for the first time in seven years. She extended her hand to the stone nervously. She didn't want to think of the haunting memories that took place that day, but they came crashing into her. Luna didn't want to remember how her parents took her out of the house, knowing that they were running to their demise. She didn't want to see her parents dying all over again. Luna choked down a sob, knowing that she couldn't escape everything that happened that day and placed her hand on the symbol.

Once her hand pressed on the carving, the symbol began to glow white. All eyes were on her as the symbol's glow began to shift into gray. A moment passed and the glow changed into a bright gold. She slowly retracted her hand while the stone began to slide away to reveal a stone staircase.

Luna turned around to face the Jedi and clone troopers as the glow on the symbol began to dim, grinning, "It's a gateway."

Luna grabbed Blue Jay's reins and motioned for them to follow her into the staircase. Once everyone passed the entrance, the stone slid over to block it again. The staircase past the doorway was etched into the side of a tall mountain which overlooked a large valley. She ran her hand along the thin, golden, glowing line that ran up the side of the staircase that gave them a source light. The short staircase curled upwards to a cliff where her home was located.

Once they arrived at the top, Luna stood in front of her childhood home and let every single memory - good and bad - come back to her. She remembered when she was little how she would call it the "Egg Home" since the front of it, which was built into the side of the mountain, was shaped like an egg. The windows that she used to climb out of were covered in dust and sand. Her gaze fell to the small garden next to the door, which did have the Gray Jedi symbol carved into the wood, and her smile faltered. The flowers and bushes that she had planted with her father all those years ago were all dried up.

Luna let her gaze fall to the right side of the house where a second path was. The path, which was the one her parents took that day, led to the bottom of the valley. It did have a stone like the one before to block the way to the house.

The valley, which seemed like a galaxy away from how high they were, could only be accessed in two ways. The path next to her house and the southern road which led to the Canyon of the Fallen. Any roads that weren't in the southern part of the valley had been blocked off by her parents, so the only way out was the southern road.

Luna gazed over the valley and froze when it landed on the Dark Canyon at the southern side of the valley. Her body turned cold as ice, remembering her father falling down it. She shuddered, trying to ignore the feeling, and turned to face her house.

Luna pulled Blue Jay over to the garden and tied him to a rusted, metal bar below the window. She turned around, seeing that the Jedi and Clone Troopers were enjoying the beautiful from the cliff and stood in front of the door. She placed her hand on the Gray Jedi symbol on the wooden door, making it glow like the one on the stone, and waited for the door to unlock. Hearing a soft click of the lock, she quietly pushed the door open and walked inside her home.

Luna stood as still as a statue on the creaky wooden flooring, seeing that everything was just how her parents and she left it on that day. In front of her was her family's small dining room that had a square table with three wooden chairs around it. Moira's Box and her lightsabers still sat on top of the old, smooth wood. She grimaced, eyeing the thick layer of dust on them.

Behind it was a stone countertop with a sink and wooden cupboards above it. Hanging above the sink on a thin metal pool was an old Ultrisian Flag. Sewn onto its white, rough fabric was a faded, golden Gray Jedi symbol. On each side of the symbol were two silver stars that were smaller than the star in the symbol. Luna's father told her they were supposed to represent the Warrior Clan and Technology Clan. The very end of the flag was ripped and had small holes in it. It was a beautiful flag; it was a shame that Queen Pandora replaced it.

There were two doorways on the sides of the room. The left one led to the tiny living room and a winding staircase to the top floor where the bedrooms were. Against the wall was a gray couch and in front of it was a Dejarik game board.

The right doorway led to her father's small library. The room was small, but he somehow managed to cram four, tall bookcases against the gray walls. Whenever she would play inside the house, her father would either play with her or he would sit on the square, blue carpet in the middle of the room, and read. Sometimes when she was little he would pull out an old, thick picture book that told Ultris's history and read it to her.

Luna sighed, remembering every happy memory that she had in her home. She was brought out of her daze when she heard footsteps behind her. Turning her head, her eyes widened when she saw Rex coming to her. She glanced at her lightsabers, panicking. Her mind was racing through thoughts to figure out what to do with them. If he saw them she knew he would make her explain everything to everyone and she was nowhere near ready for that yet.

Rex was halfway to the door when she rushed over the table and snatched her lightsabers and Moira's Box. With her back facing him, she held her lightsabers close to the curvy groove on the blue cube. With a frantic wave of her hand, the groove, stars, and planets embedded into the metal glowed as the side of the box slid open.

Luna's parents never knew how the ancient Gray Jedi artifact was built by Queen Orlena and the first leader of the Technology Clan, Moira, but they did know how it worked. The box could store anything, even some objects that couldn't fit through its small opening. It could only store things that were smaller than an R2 Unit. There wasn't a limit to how much it could store. No one knew where the stuff went once it was inside. Luna always thought that it just made the object incredibly small to fit inside it. 

Luna peered inside Moira's Box and saw the familiar black abyss. She looked over her shoulder, seeing that Rex was nearly at the door and quickly shoved her lightsabers in it. Her hand tingled for a split second when it was inside the box. She swiftly pulled her hand out, closed the box, and used the metallic string to tie it to her belt.

"What are you doing?" Rex asked, sounding a little suspicious.

Luna turned around and saw he was leaning against the wooden doorway, studying her carefully. His helmet was tucked under his arm. For a moment, his eyes scanned the room before looking at her again. She peered behind him and saw the Jedi moving their stormpedes to where Blue Jay was tied up.

"Just getting this," She answered calmly, patting Moira's Box, which rested against her hip. She didn't want to make him suspicious.

Rex studied it with curiosity and walked over to her, "What is it?"

"It's an ancient artifact that's called Moira's Box. You can store almost anything in here." Luna explained, brushing her fingers against the smooth metal to get the dust off.

Rex shot her a weird look. "You can store stuff in that?" He said in disbelief, pointing at it.

Cody and the Jedi wandered in and began to walk around the bottom floor. Cody went into the library while Anakin and Ahsoka went into the living room to the Dejarik board. Anakin looked over at Luna and motioned at the board, silently asking if Ahsoka and he could play on it. She nodded and he grinned at Ahsoka as he turned it on. Obi-Wan stood in the doorway, studying the flag hanging above the sink and then Moira's Box.

Luna grinned at Rex, nodding, "Here I'll show you how it works."

Luna waved her hand over the groove, making it slide open. Rex and Obi-Wan watched curiously as she stuck her hand into the cube. She reached further into the box, feeling nothing but emptiness. Her grin grew as she watched Rex's face gawk.

"So since Skywalker did not get lost on the way here," Luna said, mentally asking the box if it could give her five Galactic credits (if it had any). 

Rex looked at her, grinning, while Obi-Wan chuckled behind them. Out of the corner of her eye, Luna spotting Anakin shooting her a glare before going back to play the game with Ahsoka. Ignoring him, she laid out her palm inside Moira's Box and felt familiar small bars of metal fall into her hand. She pulled her hand out with the five credits in her hand and placed them in Rex's warm one. 

"I, unfortunately, owe you these," Luna said, playfully narrowing her eyes at him.

Rex stared at the credits in his hand and moved to put them back in mine, "Wait, I don't want to take your-"

"Rex," Luna interrupted him, "it's fine. It's just five credits."

Luna closed his hand that held the credits with her own. A light blush spread across his cheeks as her hands touched his. He looked away and slowly pulled his hand from hers. Rex glanced back at her before walking into her father's library to talk to Cody.

Luna chuckled,  _ "Cute."  _

Once Rex left, Obi-Wan moved over to Luna and nodded his head at the flag, "Mind explaining all of the Gray Jedi symbols?" He asked in a low voice.

As far as Luna knew, everyone was too busy to listen to them. Anakin and Ahsoka were bickering with each other as they played their quick game of dejarik. Ahsoka then had taken down one of Anakin's hologram creatures, making his mouth hanging open like a broken gate. Rex was showing Cody the credits he'd won. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but at one point Cody looked over at her and said something to Rex with an amused grin. Rex blushed, turning his head away from him, annoyed. The captain lazily punched the commander's arm, making Cody laugh with amusement.

Luna sighed, looking back at Obi-Wan, "I'm not a real person." 

Luna turned around to face the flag. She stepped to stand in front of it and reached up to take it down. Standing on her tiptoes, she realized the pole it was attached to was actually laying across the top of the dusty cabinets. She lifted it up, noticing the dusty pole was slightly taller than her and began to gently roll the flag around it.

"Care to elaborate?" Obi-Wan asked, coming to stand next to her.

_ 'No,' _ Luna thought, but she knew she had to explain everything to him since he was the one who was going to get her into the GAR. She needed him to trust her. Plus, he seemed to be the most trustworthy out of everyone (besides Rex and Ahsoka).

Luna glanced into the rooms to make sure none of them were listening. Once she made sure they weren't, she gave the Jedi Master a short version of the story. She quickly and quietly explained what happened seven years ago and how her shapeshifting abilities let allowed her to hide easily. He politely stayed silent the entire time. While she explained, she placed the flag inside Moira's Box.

When she was finished, Obi-Wan hummed and stroked his beard, "I'm sorry that happened. I do understand why you did that, but you can't let your fear of Hecate cloud your judgment. You need to return back to the Force."

Luna nodded. "I know, but not now. I'm not ready."

"Then when will you be?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I don't know."

Luna moved past Obi-Wan to the door, wanting the conversation to be over with and stopped. she slowly turned her head around, "If we get back to Coruscant, I'll tell the Jedi Council everything they want to know."

Obi-Wan nodded and sat in a chair at the table. He yawned, placed his arms on the table, and rested his head on them.

Luna looked at everyone else, surprised that they were awake. "I'll be standing guard outside. All of you should get some rest." 

The clones and Jedi nodded in agreement and laid down somewhere to rest. Luna quietly closed the door behind her and let the cool air wash over her. She noticed the stormpedes were sleeping as she walked past them. She scanned the valley, trying to see if there were any patrols. Seeing none, she yawned, sitting down next to the door and rested her back against her home. 

A couple of minutes passed as she sat and admired the stars. She didn't know what she would miss the most on her planet, the night sky, or its beautiful sunsets. Her eyelids grew heavier, thinking that she would miss the sunsets and more importantly, her friends.

Another yawn escaped her as she stretched her arms. She shifted, trying to get comfy against the cold wall. Her hands rested on her stomach. A few more minutes had passed; everything was silent except for the occasional breeze. She let her eyes close with a small huff and hoped that this time she would have pleasant dreams.

  
  
  
  



	11. Luna: Visions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmares of her failures and what's to come to haunt Luna.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment!

Luna wished she could sleep peacefully ever since her parent's death.

She wished she didn't have nightmares plaguing her mind.

And like most wishes of hers, it never came true.

Once she fell asleep, the nightmares began. The Visions started, reminding her of her greatest mistake and what was about to come.

The first one formed the familiar mountains surrounding her home, the golden grassy plains, and the breathtaking, clear blue sky. She soon realized she was standing on a ledge of a tall rocky hill with a roaring river far below her. Jagged rocks stuck out of the deep, blue water, threatening to take out anything that met them. The river rushed to the northern part of Ultris near where the City of Ulta, the Capital of Ultris, was.

Vengeful cries came from the bottom of the hill, grabbing her attention. Luna shot her gaze to the bottom of the hill, seeing her mother, Alvara, fighting Hecate with quick and graceful moves. It was almost like watching a dance as her mother fought. Her nimble movements almost hid how strong she was. Her mother may have looked fragile, but she was the greatest warrior on Ultris. 

Luna remembered before her death, Alvara told her that she would be a better warrior than her. It was her destiny to be one of the greatest Gray Jedi Warriors in history. Luna hoped her mother was right.

Alvara lashed at the masked Dark Jedi with a roar. The yellow and red blades hissed at the contact as the woman vile woman leaned forward, tauntingly. The red and yellow light from the lightsabers reflected off of her black, skull-like mask menacingly. The scarlet, ancient Dark Jedi symbols engraved into the mask seem to pop out even more. The most frightening part of her mask were her eyes beneath her visor. Her eyes were the only visible part of her face. Like her lightsabers, Hecate's eyes illuminated a bright, blood red. Every single featured of her mask was burned inside of Luna, haunting her since that day. 

Luna hated being trapped in memory of her mother's death every night. She hated being her younger-self, frightened and useless to save her mother from her fate. Her heart tore every time she felt the coll metal of the Light Amulet around her neck, the last thing her mother ever gave her. Her guilt overwhelmed her as she watched her mother protect her from Hecate. 

_ "It'sallmyfault.It'sallmyfault.It'sallmyfault.It'sallmyfault,"  _ Luna told herself as she watched helplessly.  _ "She's dead and its my fault." _

Hecate pushed back Alvara's lightsabers, making her stumble backward. The Dark Jedi then leapt with her lightsabers lifted above her head. When she swung them down, Alvara swiftly blocked the blow before rolling to the side and jumping to her feet. With a deadly roar, Alvara rushed forward and rapidly lashed her lightsabers to push Hecate away from the hill. Luna watched in horror as Hecate dodged and blocked each blow with unimaginable speed. 

Hecate laughed maliciously at Alvara's attacks, "Once I kill you, I'll kill your precious brat and take what's rightfully mine!" She proclaimed with her mask distorting her voice.

Through the Force, Luna felt overwhelmed by Hecate's rage rising. Her parents told her that those that use the dark side feed off their rage to make them stronger in battle. They become more aggressive and their attacks are harder to block. Luna didn't want to believe them, but once she saw Hecate, she did. 

Using her anger, Hecate rapidly attacked Alvara. The quick blows were almost too fast for Alvara to block. Luna's heart hammered against her chest when she realized her mother was getting slower. Alvara was breathing heavily and beads of sweat were running down her face. She was going to die if she didn't end Hecate soon, but Luna knew that her mother was not meant to win.

"You will never touch her!" Alvara growled through gritted teeth as she blocked Hecate's lightsabers.

Hecate swung her Alvara's lightsaber's away and Force pushed her towards the base of the hill. Alvara was thrown back with her lightsabers lowered. She tried to stand up with her legs wobbling and a stream of blood running down her head. She barely got on one knee as Hecate slowly stepped closer to her, like a beast coming in for the final kill. 

_ "Get up. Please, get up. Get back up and fight. You can win, please just get up!"  _ Luna pleaded, trying change the course of the nightmare.  __

Before Luna could scream, Hecate drove her lightsaber's through her mother's chest.

"NNNNOOOOOOOO!"

Alvara looked up at Hecate, heartbroken, as her lightsaber fell from her hands. A single tear run down her cheek as she raised her hand and softly touched the side of her mask. Luna wondered for a moment if her mother knew the monster under it, but she couldn't. It would be impossible. 

Her mother slowly looked up to Luna and mouthed,  _ "Run." _

Alvara's body faded away as Hecate deactivated her lightsabers. Alvara's deactivated lightsabers fell to the ground next to Hecate's metal boots. Tears ran down Luna's face as her body shook. She wanted to scream, but her throat felt too hoarse. Fear overwhelmed her, making her body stumble back to the edge of the hill. The river below her roared, either welcoming her to her escape or warning her of her certain death. 

Luna remembered after her twelfth birthday, her parents told her that they were destined to die protecting her from Hecate. They couldn't do anything to stop it; the only thing they could do was prepare her for that day. She knew she wasn't going to be ready then, and she wasn't ready to say goodbye when it happened. 

Hecate's sickening laughter echoed as she stood at the bottom of the hill. She snatched Alvara's lightsabers and clicked them to her black leather belt. She chuckled darkly; to Luna's disgust, Alvara's lightsabers were her trophy. Hecate tilted her head up and pointed her lightsaber at her. 

Luna's heart stopped; she was going to kill her. She didn't stand a chance against her. She killed both of her parents. They were Masters, she was just a Padawan. Even if she didn't stand a chance, she still had to try to defend herself. She reached for her lightsabers on her belt and gasped.

Luna left them at the house.

She placed them on the dining table before her mother came running in. They were in such a rush to run away that she had left them.

_ "I'm going to die,"  _ Luna thought as Hecate began to climb.

Luna panic; if she continued to climb up the hill she would just trap myself. If she jumped into the river Hecate would just follow her, and if she didn't kill her, then the jagged rocks surely would. She prayed that someone or something would save her.

"Please," Luna pleaded, looking up at the sky, "help me."

Once the words left her, a thundering sound erupted from the clearing where her father was thrown down a Dark Canyon. An overpowering wave of sorrow, rage, and...power coming rushing to her. The power was ancient...it was never supposed to be awoken. It was dark and forbidden. This disturbance in the Force felt like nothing Luna ever felt before.

Luna knew disturbances as strong as that only happened when a catastrophic event had occurred; like a large group of people dying at the same time. But the disturbance didn't feel like death, it felt as if a dark power had been released from its cage.

Luna's body was being pulled into unconsciousness as the quaking sound became louder. The ground started to shake, pushing her closer to the edge. Through her cloudy vision, she could see Hecate lying on the ground at the bottom of the hill. She was clutching her mask with her talon-like fingers as she screamed in pain. She must have been thrown off the hill from the disturbance.

Black spots clouded Luna's vision as she felt heavier. Another tremor shook the ground as her foot reached over the cliff's edge. She couldn't bring herself to fight to stay awake as her body leaned back and fell of the cliff. Wind roared in her ears as she grew closer to the river. Darkness enveloped her as her back hit the icy water. The strong current whisked her away as she was pulled into unconsciousness. 

Luna remembered waking up on a river bank a couple miles away from the mountains. Her muddy boots rested in the river while the rest of her body laid on top of a smooth gray rock. In the golden grass surrounding her, Luna could make out a blur of dark colors. The one closest to her was a deep navy blue.

That was when she had met Blue Jay. He followed her around once she fully regained consciousness. He helped her travel north and reach the city. She thought that's where her dream would take her next, but she was wrong.

Luna woke up in a dark room that was decorated with white, silver, and blue colors. Paintings of historic events hung on the walls. Among the paintings was an image of Queen Pandora, Sierra, and Allura. The Queen was sitting on her throne her long, raven-colored dress covering her legs. Standing on her right was Sierra in her armor and Allura in a simple blue dress. Allura seemed to be hiding behind her mother's throne. Instead of smiling, Queen Pandora and Sierra chose to make a stoic look for the painting. Allura gave a small smile, but her eyes gave off a hint of sadness.

"This is Allura's room," Luna whispered as her gaze wandered.

She had only been in Allura's room a couple times. Most of the time it was only to be her bodyguard upon Allura's request while she held meetings with her sister and her mother.

Luna was standing in the middle of the room between her two white couches with a light blue carpet underneath her feet. To the left was a balcony that overlooked the dazzling city. A full moon shone brightly through the balcony's doorway, slightly lightening up the room.

In front of her were two doors that led into Allura's bedroom. Luna knew only three people were allowed in her room - Allura and her two maids. She never been inside, but she heard rumors from the maids that she had a scary amount of weapons hidden inside it. She never believed the rumor to be true. Allura didn't seem like the fighting type to her. She seemed so pacifistic to her that she never asked her if they were true or not.

Luna was confused when she realized she was taller. Her hands patted her body, realizing she was twenty-one again and in her Gray Jedi attire. Her clothes were dry and she didn't feel the ache in her head anymore. But, she did feel dark presence close to her. It was weaker than the Force tremor, but it was enough to set her on the edge.

A scream came from behind her. Before she could turn around, she heard the familiar hiss of ignited lightsabers. As Luna spun around, she took in the sight of red lightsabers clashing against each other. 

Luna couldn't believe what she was seeing. 

Allura was on the ground behind Sierra with Ventress in front of the two with her lightsaber's lifted high above her head. The assassin's murderous glare was fixed on Allura. With impossible speed, Sierra reached from behind her and pulled out two black lightsabers from armor, igniting the red blades. She gritted her teeth as her lightsaber's blocked Ventress's attack.

Luna watched in horror as Sierra's face slowly shifted. Her skin turned gray, her black eyes swiftly changed into a mixture of bright red and yellow, and scar-like markings slowly formed on her face. Two scarlet symbols of stretched-out diamonds on her forehead. Two thin lines started at the inner corner of her eye and traveled down to her mouth.

"Stay. Away. From. My. Sister!" Sierra hissed.

Before Luna had time to process more of the scene, a white flash blinded her. She let out a small scream and rubbed her eyes to recover. When she opened them, a new vision was placed in front of her.

Instead of being in another room, she was on an unfamiliar. The ground was covered in different shades of gray and there was a nip in the air. On the horizon behind her was a bright, yellow sun. She was sure the moon was inhabited. She couldn't see any creatures in sight. 

Standing before Luna was Sierra and a man in black and red Mandalorian armor. Sierra wasn't wearing her armor, instead, she was wearing all black clothes with an old, ripped cloak. Her face wasn't covered in the Dark Jedi markings and was thankfully its normal pale tone. Luna spotted something in her hand, but she couldn't tell what.

The Mandalorian's armor was mainly black but had some red markings covering it. There were scratches, burn marks, and dents on his armor. She noticed the red Jaig Eyes symbol on top of the man's helmet - the same symbol that was on Rex's. A red skull was painted on the helmet just below the Jaig eyes. The paint was chipped and was slightly faded. A short black cape with a red line running down the middle of it hung from his shoulders. Small holes littered his cape. Around his waist was a belt with two blasters, ammo, and grenades attached to it.

Luna remembered reading a description of the Mandalorian from files on Ultris. He was a mysterious bounty hunter nicknamed,  _ The Reaper _ due to the number of kills he made over the years. He never showed his face. No one knew what he looked like or what his real name was. 

When Sierra moved her hand, Luna realized she was holding a datapad. She peered closer and saw a picture of Allura and The Reaper next to each other on the screen. On top of the screen in green letters, it read,  _ DNA TEST: POSITIVE. _

"Kidnap Princess Allura and keep her hidden," Sierra said as she raised her free hand. "I'll make sure you'll get in and out without anyone knowing you were ever there."

The Reaper nodded and grabbed her forearm and shook it. "I promise, I'll keep her safe." He said with a gruff voice.

The ground beneath Luna's feet gave away as another white flash blinded her. She screamed as she fell on a cool, smooth surface. Once she opened her eyes, she was met with darkness. The air was cool in the endless abyss. She slowly stood up and took in calming breaths.

"I'm sorry Orlena," A male voice trembled behind her.

Luna whipped around and saw a man kneeling under the only source of light. She could only see his but, she assumed the small man was his early to mid-twenties. A black cloak was covering most of his body. The hood was covering most of his lowered head. Loose onyx colored strands of hair poked out underneath the hood. She studied the cloak and his black and silver clothes, realizing that they an ancient royal garb.

From the Ultrisian symbols on his clothes, Luna could tell that the clothes were meant for a coronation. But, the clothes he was wearing were only supposed to be worn by the to-be ruler of Ultris. But it didn't make sense, there wasn't a signal prince in Ultrisian history that was crowned King.

When Luna stepped closer to him he began to shake. He wrapped his hands around his body as he let out a loud sob. A tear drop on his knee.

"He took me and turned me into that  _ monster _ ," The man said, shaking even more. "And it's all my fault."

Luna inched closer to him and knelt down. She could feel his fear and anguish that surrounded him. Something was haunting him and she didn't know what.

Luna cleared her throat, "Are you ok-"

His head suddenly shot up, revealing his gray face and blood red eyes. His fang-like teeth were bared when he showed his wicked grin. Luna fell back as the man stood up and let out a rage-filled roar.

The darkness surrounding them stripped away as if a dark cloud was blown away. A hanger full of Republic fighter ships revealed itself. She spotted Clone Troopers behind the man were taking cover behind a couple of crates.

Luna scurried away from the man until her back hit a crate. The man was now in black and gray Dark Jedi robes with a black cloak. Luna's eyes spotted a red and black shard hanging on a long silver chain on his chest. She never seen anything like it, but whatever it was, it was full of darkness and anger.

Luna's breath hitched as the man's claw-like fingers wrapped around his lightsabers. He ignited the blades, grinning like a merciless hunter that was about to kill its prey. 

Luna quickly reached for her own lightsabers on her belt. When she didn't feel the familiar smooth metal, her stomach dropped. Why did she have to lose her lightsabers every time someone tried to kill her? She looked up, trying to accept she was going to die.

It was as if time slowed down as she spotted someone in the corner of her eye. A man in white and blue armor running was running to her as the Dark Jedi raised his lightsabers. He swung them down to her, but the clone captain was too fast for him.

"You stay away from her!" Captain Rex yelled as slid in front of her, blocking the blow with her yellow lightsabers.

Everything that happened in her nightmare overwhelmed Luna so much that she couldn't focus. She had too many questions. She wanted to know how Sierra was a Dark Jedi and what was going to happen to Allura. She didn't know who the ancient Dark Jedi was and she wanted to know why he was trying to kill her. She wanted know how she lost her lightsaber and how Rex got a hold of them. 

It was all too much for her. She needed to focus to see what else she could learn. 

The only thing that pulled her back was seeing the eyes of the captain looking back at her. 

And as quick as the visions started, it ended with a bright flash.

  
  



	12. Luna: Escaping Ultris

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna helps the Jedi and Clone Troopers escape Ultris. But in the process of it, General Sierra Crux tries to capture them again and accidentally releases an ancient evil.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that I haven't posted a chapter in a few months! I just edited this one. Please read the end notes! I hope you guys enjoy this really long chapter!

Luna’s eyes shot open as a blood-curdling scream erupted out her mouth. She jumped to her feet in a flash before running her hands up and down her arms to calm herself down. Despite her attempts to stop it, her body was trembling. In the midst of her panic, the rising sun peeked over the mountain tops with its bright rays blinding her.

Her heart was racing as she tried to process everything that she saw. Her breathing was slowing down as bewildered thoughts raced through her head. What in the Force did she just see? 

Except for the first vision, all of them were about the future, and like most of them, she didn't know when they would happen. Her visions could show events that were only a few days away or a few weeks, sometimes months. 

Luna tried to remember every little detail in each vision to try to find clues of when they would happen. In the one where Sierra was protecting Allura from Ventress, there was a full moon held high in the sky. Full Moons on Ultris only appeared once a month and the last one was a month ago. She knew the next full moon would be in seven days. Judging by how high the moon was in the vision, Ventress would try to kill Allura around midnight. 

She didn't know if Sierra knew that Allura's life would be in danger that night. Only time would tell.

The vision with Sierra and The Reaper was...odd. She couldn't determine when it would happen, unlike the last one. It was very likely that it was going to take place after the attempt on Allura's life. 

The vision made Luna uneasy. Sierra was paying the bounty hunter to kidnap Allura and hide her, but why? Allura almost got murdered by the Sith Assassin in the vision before. Maybe Sierra wanted to keep Allura safe without Queen Pandora or anyone else knowing it was her? But as far as Luna knew, Sierra hated her sister almost as much as she hated her. 

The datapad Sierra was holding read  _ DNA TEST: POSITIVE  _ with a picture of Allura and the Reaper on it, which only added to her confusion. How could Allura and The Reaper be related? It was impossible. Ultrisians were forbidden to travel to Outsider planets, especially Mandalore. If it was true that Allura is related to The Reaper in any way, then Allura was not completely Ultrisian.

Allura would be a Half-Blood. 

On Ultris, being only half Ultrisian was a bad taboo. It symbolized that your blood was stained by an Outsider's. Half-Bloods were believed to be chaotic, dangerous, and uncontrollable. Most said that they were cursed to be monsters. In the past, people that were only part Ultrisian were cast away and were looked down upon. They were even shamed for existing by other Ultrisians in public.

She wasn’t sure if her people still believed that since it was an old belief. She bet that most people who did believe it were part of the older generations. Most of them were stuck in the “great” old ways. 

Luna would never disrespect anyone who was a Half-Blood Ultrisian. Her parents, Alvara and Azimuth, taught her that all life was sacred and precious no matter who or what it is. Everyone should be treated as she would want to be treated. If anyone found out that Allura wasn't fully Ultrisian, then she would be thrown out of the castle. 

The last vision that took place was in what she thought was a Republic ship hanger with that monster and Captain Rex. Luna took a look at the bright side of the vision: if she was in a Republic ship, she would be accepted into the GAR. Rex was there, so it was very likely that she would be assigned to his squadron. But there was something that troubled her in the vision, and it wasn’t the monster attacking her.

It's what Rex did. 

Rex jumped between her and the Dark Jedi monster just before it tried to kill her. He had her lightsabers and he blocked the monster's attack. While he was holding back the red lightsabers, he was looking back at her to see if she was okay. She remembered what she saw in his golden-brown eyes - he was scared, but not for himself. 

He was scared for her. 

The loud slam of the door threw her out of her thoughts. She shot her head over to the door, only to see Captain Rex and Commander Cody with their weapons drawn and ready to shoot. Their helmets were off, most likely because they were asleep before she woke up screaming. Once they scanned the area and realized it was clear, they lowered their weapons. 

Rex walked over to her while Cody went over to check on the Stormpedes. The captain spun his two guns in his hands with expert skill and slid them in their holsters on the side of his hips. 

_ "I wish I could do that,"  _ Luna thought.  __

"What happened, I heard screaming?" Rex questioned as he scanned her to make sure she was okay. He looked concerned as he looked her over. 

"Nothing. I-I woke up from a nightmare," Luna answered quickly, looking away from his gaze. 

Before Rex could respond, the three Jedi jumped out of the doorway with their lightsabers in hand. Once they realized there wasn't a threat, they hooked their lightsabers on their belt. 

"What happened?" Anakin snapped, narrowing his eyes on Luna. 

_ "He still doesn't trust me."  _ Luna groaned in her head. 

"I woke up from a nightmare. Everything is fine." 

Anakin's gaze softened a little, almost as if he was giving her sympathy. Before he could say anything else, Obi-Wan pulled him and Ahsoka to the side to talk. She sighed and walked past Rex, who was still staring at her worriedly. As she walked into her old house, she saw Cody gently patting the white and orange stormpede he and Obi-Wan rode on. 

It was sunrise so they had to leave soon, Luna thought to herself as she stepped inside her house to grab a few things. Her first thought was to go to her father’s library and grab a few books and datapads to remind her of Ultris when she got homesick. 

Memories of her father reading his books to her flashed before her. She smiled when she remembered when he would act out some scenes of the story to make her laugh. Her hand landed on her favorite book that he would read to her:  _ The Beginnings of Ultris.  _

The history book told the story of the first Era of Ultris and the Monarch War. When Luna was younger, Azimuth would read a chapter to her each night before she went to bed. Her father was the reason why she loved history so much. 

Luna pulled the thick book out of the bookshelf gently. The spine of the book was a little torn and the cover had dust covering it. Some of the rough pages were slightly ripped, but other than that the book was in good condition. 

Luna couldn't help but admire the ancient cover. The cover picture was an image of Queen Ulta in a long white dress and her beautiful, golden hair flowing behind her. Like her statue in the city, her arms formed an "X" and her hands held her yellow lightsabers. A gold light surrounded her as she stood in a beautiful green meadow. Beneath her feet were thin, black tentacles trying to reach her, but her golden aurora sent them away. 

Luna didn't realize Rex had followed her in while she ran her eyes over the book. He stood behind her and picked his helmet off the floor. He placed his helmet under his arm and coughed to get her attention. 

Luna lowered the book and turned around slowly. She gave him a small smile and glanced down at the book. 

"Sorry, I just wanted to grab a few things before we left," Luna chuckled awkwardly as she pushed her black hair out of the way. 

"Oh it's fine," Rex said as he peered down at the book in her hand and pointed at it. "What's that?" 

Luna lifted up the book and flipped it around to show him the cover. "It's a book that my father would read to me before I went to bed when I was little. It's a picture book that tells the story of Ultris's first days and the Monarch War that took place a little over 5,000 years ago," She explained with a slight grin, reminiscing the memories she had with her father when he read the book to her. 

Rex smiled curiously. "Oh really?" 

His bright smile was contagious. Luna chuckled lightly, hoping that he would smile like that more in the future. His smile made him even more handsome, in her opinion. 

"Yeah," Luna nodded, "he's the reason why I majored in history in school." 

"Where's he now?" Rex asked, making Luna’s heartache. 

Her smile fell as she looked away from his gaze, making the captain’s grin formed into a slight frown. With a quiet sigh, Luna lowered her book and answered him. 

"He's dead," Luna said quietly with the memory of his death flashing before her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rex froze. "My mom and dad were murdered seven years ago." 

"I'm so sorry, Nixa," Rex apologized as he lowered his head slightly, ashamed that he brought the memory back. 

"It's okay, it was a long time ago anyway," Luna replied, returning to his gaze. "Don't feel bad for asking either. It was bound to come up eventually." 

Rex nodded hesitantly and put on his helmet. He stood in front of her for a moment almost as if he wanted to apologize again. But he turned around and grabbed Cody's. Once the helmet was in his hands, he walked over to the door. Before he exited the house, he turned back to her. 

"I'll tell them that we should leave when you come out?" Rex said in a questionable tone. 

"Sounds good." 

Rex nodded and walked outside to tell the others. 

Luna stared down at the book for a moment before she raised it in front of Moira's Box. She was lucky that the mysterious box would be able to shrink it down to let it fit inside the opening. Whenever she would want to take it out the book would return back to its original size. 

Remembering what her father taught her, she held the book closer to the opening of the box. As she moved the book closer, a blue and white glow formed around it as it shrunk in her hands. Once it was small enough to fit in, the book left her hands and was sucked into the box. The opening closed with a quiet hiss. 

With one last look, Luna ran her eyes over the house as she sauntered to the door. She would always remember the memories that took place there, even the good and the bad ones. She stopped in front of the door, not knowing if I would ever see her home again. With a deep breath, she stepped outside and closed the door behind her. 

Everyone - except for Rex - was on their stormpedes as they waited for Luna. She quickly ran over and jumped on Blue Jay's back. Once she was on, she reached for Rex's hand and helped him up. 

Once she apologized for keeping them waiting, she started to explain the plan.

"We have to travel down there and go around that small Dark Canyon," Luna pointed at the very end of the valley below them. "Once we pass that we just have to find the ship in the Canyon of the Fallen and escape without getting shot down." 

"Sounds easy enough," Obi-Wan commented with a slight grin. 

"We might run into trouble, so stay alert," Luna warned. After a moment of silence, she nodded and nudged Blue Jay to move. "Alright, let's go." 

\--------------------

It took them less than an hour to get to travel around the Dark Canyon. Luna was careful to make sure everyone didn’t get too close to the canyon. She didn’t want anyone to end up like her father. Every second she was near it she spent in agonizing pain. She was trembling, hearing the screams of her fallen father as they passed. She was thankful when they finally got to the Canyon of the Fallen. 

Normal canyons on ordinary planets are described as beautiful and breathtaking with sparkling rivers and astounding wildlife. They are covered in a variety of plants with amazing photo-taking opportunities. 

This is not how one would describe the Canyon of the Fallen. 

The canyon was a home of death and darkness. It's stone walls were made up of shades of gray. The passages were a maze; most led up to the top of the canyon, but there were some that led underground. It was impossible for plants to grow in its rough, gray soil nor did any wildlife live there. The air was cold and was always poisoned with the smell of smoke and ash from the Monarch War. The sky was always covered by dark gray storm clouds. It was forbidden to venture into ever since the last battle of the Monarch War. 

The worst part about the Canyon of the Fallen were the black spikes. These spikes were littered throughout the entire canyon and they all came in different sizes. They seemed to be made out of smooth, black glass, but they were indestructible. Even a lightsaber couldn't cut through them. 

At the canyon's entrance, where its walls made an opening, there were two giant spikes on each side of the entrance. They crossed each other at the very top to make an "X." The entrance to the Canyon of the Fallen was named Hell's Gate. 

"It's bigger than I thought it would be," Luna said in a mix of awe and cautiousness. 

They had stopped in front of the gate to give the stormpedes a small break. They were all staring at the giant structure before them with uneasiness. Ever since the Monarch War explorers ventured inside of the canyon; the lucky ones died and those who survived came out with...disturbed minds. Luckily, by looking at the tracker's screen, the ship wasn't too far in. 

"You've never been here?" Anakin asked, whipping around to face Luna. 

"This is my first time here, but I know enough about it to get us through safely," Luna answered, tapping Blue Jay with her heel to step forward. The others followed. 

"What are these crystals?" Ahsoka questioned as they walked under the gateway. 

"They're creations of Xarxes," Luna answered, glancing down at the tracker. "They are indestructible, even lightsabers can't break them." 

They came up to five wide breaks in the canyon that led to wide passages. The ones two their left and right ran along the side of the Canyon's wall and the other three branched inside of the canyon. The tracker indicated to Luna to go down the path that was straight ahead. 

"Who's Xarxes?" Ahsoka asked as Luna motioned everyone down the center path. "And why did he create all of this?" 

Luna grinned, excited. She loved giving history lessons, especially on her favorite subject: The Beginning of Ultris. 

"It would be easier if I tell you the complete story," Luna told her. 

As they began to travel down the path, more black spikes kept on appearing. They were sticking out of the ground and the sides of the walls. Most were thick and as tall as a tank. She was thankful that the path was so wide so they wouldn't have to squeeze past them.

Everyone listened carefully as Luna spoke. "A little more than 5,000 years ago, there were three clans, their names lost in history, that were at war. Each clan wanted to rule over the other two, but the clans would not give up.” Luna paused for a moment to glance down at the tracker and then continued. "After decades of bloodshed, two heroes, Ulta and Xarxes rose up to stop the fighting. They were the first Force Sensitives in Ultrisian history." 

"Wait, didn't you say Xarxes was the one who created these spikes?" Anakin questioned and I nodded. "I don’t need to be a Jedi to sense the darkness coming off of them. How come he's the hero?" 

Obi-Wan shook his head, "Patience, Anakin, just listen to the story." 

Anakin rolled his eyes and continued to listen. 

"As I was saying, Ulta and Xarxes stopped the fighting and brought peace. They were named King and Queen of Ultris shortly after they married each other and established the Gray Jedi Order on Ultris." Luna explained, seeing that there was another path break up ahead." After a few years of creating the kingdom, they had a daughter named, Orlena, who was force sensitive like her parents."

The passages branched off into three different directions this time. Luna glanced down at the tracker and it instructed her to go into the one on the right. She pointed down that direction and led them down it. 

"As Orlena grew, she became more and more powerful each day, but she never became as strong as her parents," Luna continued, "Over time, Ultris's kingdom grew and its technology was advancing at an astounding rate. Everyone thought everything was perfect, except for one person." 

"Xarxes, I assume," Obi-Wan guessed. 

"Correct," Luna nodded before she continued again. "Xarxes had darkness growing inside of him and he believed that Ultris should rule over every planet in the galaxy. He wanted to create an empire with his army of followers. When his wife, Ulta, discovered his turning, she banished him from the kingdom." 

"Did he come here?" Rex asked, peering over her shoulder. 

"Not yet, he escaped to one of his underground Dark Jedi Temples he created," Luna answered, turning to look back at Rex. "He tried to spread his darkness to the surface by creating the Dark Canyons. After they started to spread, he traveled here and created his new temple which is what we call the Grave of Xarxes. It’s at the center of this canyon." 

Luna paused for a second and studied the tracker. It was glitching - most likely due to the canyon's mysterious force. However, they were close to the ship and were only one or two clicks down the path. 

"Over time, Xarxes managed to grow more powerful and gained troops for his army. Legend says that Xarxes had the power to create these spikes at will because of his connection to the planet," Luna explained, pointing at one of the spikes. "He even trained a Dark Jedi Assassin to kill the queen and the princess. The assassin's first attempt was the beginning of the Monarch War." 

"Then what happened?" Cody asked. 

"After the third attempt on their lives, Ulta and Orlena brought Ultris's army here when they followed the assassin," Luna explained, running her gaze over the canyon's walls. "When the battle started, the assassin was trapped under the rock. Legend tells that one day the assassin will be released from his chains and kill the Queen of Ultris." 

"Do you believe the legend?" Rex questioned, peering at the canyon's walls. 

Luna shook her head. "I do not believe the legends. They are only stories that our elders told to keep us out of here. Plus, if it were true, the assassin would be long dead by now." 

Rex nodded, letting her continue. 

"During the battle, Ulta and Xarxes were engaged in a fight to the death," Luna began, frowning at the next part of the story. "Ulta was victorious and defeated Xarxes, but she died from her wounds soon after. Some say she used an ancient power that only the royal line had to defeat him. Another legend tells that one-day Xarxes will rise again to claim the throne, but I don't believe it to be true."

Obi-Wan stroked his beard. "If I remember correctly, Ultris did cut itself away from the rest of the galaxy around that time, correct?" He asked. 

Luna smiled and nodded. "Yes, when Orlena became queen, she ordered Ultris to be cut off from the galaxy. It's been like that until now. To make sure a king never became too powerful, she removed the position of king and made her husband be her head general." 

"Wow, I do not believe the Jedi archives have a record of the war," Obi-Wan remarked. "Actually, they don't have much information on Ultris...except," He paused, placing a finger on his beard. 

Luna stared at him questionably. "Except?" 

"Except for the Queens," Obi-Wan finally revealed. "We weren't expecting a call from Queen Pandora. We thought Pandora's older sister was contacting us at first. We don't know her name, but we do know that she has an older sister." 

Luna’s eyebrows furrowed together as her lips pursed. "That's not possible. According to the family tree, Pandora's mother, Queen Tierra, only had one child and that was her. Your information must be wrong." 

Obi-Wan shook his head. "No, it's not," He claimed before he explained. "Before my time, the Jedi Council received a message from Queen Tierra. In the message, she stated that there was a Force Sensitive child that was not in the royal line. Because of the agreement the Jedi and the Gray Jedi Order had on Force-Sensitive children, the Jedi Order was allowed to take the child." 

Luna nodded as she listened. She knew of the agreement between the Jedi and Gray Jedi Order. If there was a Force Sensitive child in the royal line, the Jedi Order was not permitted to take it. However, if there was a Force Sensitive child that was not in the royal line then the Jedi Order was allowed to take it. 

Luna always wondered why she wasn't taken. When her father told her about the agreement, she had asked him and he answered that the Queen of Ultris didn't know that she existed. The Queen must contact the Jedi Council and tell them they had permission to take the child. 

"However, in the message," Obi-Wan continued, "she stated that she was not able to come because she had to deal with a situation that happened with her youngest daughter, Pandora. She also said her oldest daughter would not be able to come as well." 

Luna eyed Obi-Wan in disbelief. There weren't any records of Queen Tierra having another daughter other than Pandora. Was the first daughter erased from the historical records? 

Obi-Wan and Anakin began to bicker amongst themselves as Luna looked down at the tracker again. Assuming that the tracker was correct, they would have to make two more turns to reach the ship. 

Over the loud voices of Anakin and Obi-Wan, Luna heard a low hum of squad speeders coming up behind them. The sound was faint, however, she knew Ultrisian speeders were loud when they were at their max speed. The speeders' engine got louder as the seconds passed. 

Luna signaled them to stop as she whipped her head around. Everyone turned around and stared down the path, listening to the speeders engines growing louder. 

"What's wrong?" Rex questioned, peering down the canyon. 

A loud roar of speeders echoed towards them. 

"They're here," Luna gasped, kicking Blue Jay to get him to go down the canyon at full speed. "Come on! The ship is down this way!" 

The Jedi's stormpedes quickly followed after Luna down the passage. The clone troopers readied their weapons and continued to look behind them. Ahead of them, the path split up into two. The tracker signaled Luna to take the right one. 

"We're taking a right!" Luna called out. The speeders were closer now - only a couple minutes behind them. 

They turned down the correct path as Luna tried to decipher if the stormpedes could outrun the speeders at full speed. They were fast creatures, but the speeders could be faster. 

Just as the last turn was in sight, six Ultrisian soldiers on black speeder bikes rounded the corner behind them. Just like their speeders, their armor was black. They were in a diamond formation with General Sierra leading them. 

Sierra pointed at Luna menacingly. "There's the traitor! Kill them!" She hollered as two speeders on the side of her sped past her. 

The two speeders began to shoot at them, making the clones fire back. Luna reached for her bow from her back and grabbed it. Once the metal formed into the bow and the plasma string ignited, Luna fired an arrow at one of the speeder's blasters. Her aim was true and the arrow shot right into the speeder's left blaster to make it explode. 

Rex shot the other soldier in the shoulder. "Nice shot!" He exclaimed as two more speeders replaced the one Luna shot down. 

To protect her master, Ahsoka ignited her lightsaber and deflected the blasts that were aimed around her. Obi-Wan and Anakin kept glancing behind them to see what was happening. 

The stormpedes did not falter when the blasts whizzed past them. They were brave creatures and did not back down from a fight. Luckily, their thick skin acted like armor and a shot wouldn't hurt them that much. 

As Rex and Cody tried to shoot down the evasive speeders, Luna studied the canyon's walls. Glancing at the speeders and seeing they were in a horizontal line, she made up her mind and shoved Blue Jay’s reins in Rex's lap. 

Using her bowstring, Luna created a small plasma rope and quickly tied it around her arm. "Steer Blue Jay, I'm taking care of those three speeders!" Luna shouted as she pulled back the bowstring and created an arrow that was attached to the rope. 

"Wait, what?" Rex exclaimed as Luna fired the arrow at a rock ledge at the top of the wall. 

With one hand, Luna held onto the rope as she jumped off Blue Jay's back. The plasma string shortened quickly and shot her up the wall. She quickly placed her bow over her shoulder and stuck out her feet before they landed on the rock wall. Once her feet touched the rock, she swiftly jumped off and swung down as the speeders came towards her. She braced her legs for impact as the string became longer. The soldiers let out a shocked yelp as she slammed right into the soldiers on the speeders. Without any drivers, the speeders lost control and exploded as they crashed into the wall. 

Letting go of the plasma rope, Luna landed on a small path on the side of the canyon. She ran after the Jedi and Clone Troopers as Sierra roared with rage. She pulled her bow from her shoulder and created another rope. With an arrow attached to the rope, she shot it ahead of the stormpedes and jumped off the thin path. 

Luna grinned down at Rex as he moved back on Blue Jay and dropped the reins. She released her grip from the rope and landed on the saddle gracefully. Just as she got myself situated in the saddle Sierra and the other two speeders sped up. 

"That was fun!" Luna laughed as she checked the tracker again. They were supposed to take another right to enter a dead-end where the ship was supposed to be. 

"It looked like it!" Ahsoka remarked. 

The two soldiers driving next to Sierra pulled grenades from their belt. Sierra nodded at them, silently ordering them to throw them. 

"Grenades!" Rex and Cody warned as they came hurtling towards them. 

Ahsoka and Anakin were the first to take action. Both of them shot up their hands and Force pushed the two grenades away from them. The two grenades were launched off to the walls of the canyon and exploded on impact. The canyon’s walls rumbled once the grenades went off. 

"Here comes another one!" Obi-Wan shouted as Sierra threw one towards Luna. 

Rex grabbed Luna’s shortened staff from her back and held it back to prepare to swing it. Just as the grenade got close enough, Rex whacked the grenade into the side of the canyon. Luna barely had time to register the enormous explosion. It was different from the other ones. This one was full of fire and lightning.

It wasn’t until Luna heard the blood-wrenching when she realized that the grenade didn’t just break a chunk of the wall off. 

It broke a  _ prison.  _

  
  


Sierra and the speeders stopped as they slowed down the stormpedes. Black smoke rained down as the screeching ceased. Luna was drawn to the heavy footsteps coming from inside the smoke. She could make out a tall, shadowy figure from the edge of the smoke. Once the person slowly crept out, Luna pulled back Blue Jay's reigns to stop him. 

The man was in ancient, Ultrisian black and gray attire. A hooded red and black cape covered his face and his tall, lean body. Talon-like fingers rested above his two lightsabers that were attached to the man's hip. Darkness and hate radiated off of him. The man pulled the hood off his head and revealed his gray face and bleeding red eyes. 

Luna gasped, it was the monster from her vision. 

"Oh my Ulta," She gulped, staring at him in disbelief. 

Everyone froze as the Dark Jedi studied them. He was breathing heavily and lowered his gloved hands to his lightsabers. When his eyes landed on Sierra, the monster sneered and grabbed one lightsaber from his belt. 

"Daughter of the Deceiver," he hissed with a low voice before igniting his lightsaber, "you shall die first." 

Sierra sat in her speeder, undaunted by his threat. She pointed at the Dark Jedi and the two soldiers hopped off of their speeders and grabbed their spears that were attached to the side of it. They marched towards the grinning Dark Jedi and stood in their attack position. 

Luna didn't wait to hear Sierra give the rest of her orders. She kicked Blue Jay and shouted for the Jedi to follow her. Rex slid her staff into its holster as they raced down the path. The path curved and showed them the next turn they had to take. Luna signaled that they were turning right to get to the ship. They were far away from Sierra and the monster when they rounded the corner. 

Luna heard the roar of Sierra's speeder as they spotted the red T-6 ship in the middle of the clearing. The bay doors were lowered and the clone pilot was standing at the bottom of them. Once he saw them, he ran inside to power up the ship. 

Luna turned and caught Sierra racing after them in her line of sight. She knew someone would have to distract her from contacting a squad of ships to shoot them down. Luna wasn't going to let the Clones or the Jedi stay and fight her. She did trust their fighting abilities, she didn't want them to be left behind. 

"You guys get on the ship with the stormpedes! I'll distract Sierra while you guys get airborne!" Luna shouted, handing the reins to Rex. 

"We're not leaving you here!" Rex claimed. 

"Don't worry!" Luna yelled as she jumped off Blue Jay and landed on her feet. "I'll jump on the ship when I get the chance! Just get in the air!" 

The Clones and the Jedi nodded and slowed down as they went inside the ship. Orders were being given to the pilot by Anakin that Luna couldn't make out. The ship's engine gave a low hum as it was turned on. 

Luna whipped around to face Sierra on her speeder, who was getting too close for comfort. Luna didn’t know how much time they needed to start the ship nor did she know if she could take Sierra on in her stage of rage. Without the use of the Force, it would take her forever to fight Sierra and get on the ship. With the Jedi and Clones being busy inside the ship, she could use it without them knowing. And Sierra didn't know Luna was Force Sensitive - she had the element of surprise. 

Luna watched Sierra carefully as she prepared to go on the defensive. Sierra had the advantage since she was riding a speeder bike. Sierra screamed in fury as she charged at Luna. Luna waited until the angered general got close enough for her to snap out her hands and released a powerful Force push. Sierra didn’t have enough time to react to the sudden attack and was launched her off her speeder. Luna jumped away from the speeder as it sped past her and crashed against the canyon wall. 

Luna quickly grabbed her bow staff as Sierra stood up slowly. She groaned in pain when she got to her feet and shot Luna a death-glare. It wasn’t until Sierra made a wicked grin that Luna felt uneasy. The general reached behind her back and pulled out two lightsabers. Luna gasped, they were the same lightsabers she saw in her vision. 

"I didn't know you could do that, traitor," She snarled as the warriors began to circle each other. 

"I'm full of surprises." 

"I should thank you for helping the Republic Dogs escape, you know? I finally have a reason to kill you, traitor," Sierra grinned with her finger resting on the button to ignite her lightsabers. 

"Your mother is the traitor! She betrayed our ways and our people!" Luna spat back. 

"The queen is doing what we should have done years ago!" 

"By joining the Sith?" Luna shot back. "The Sith will bring Ultris to its destruction! They will kill anyone who defies them! Allura is one of those people!" 

Sierra froze in her tracks and eyed Luna in disbelief. Her hands lowered her lightsabers as fear swept over her face. The general shook her head and growled as if she was arguing with herself. 

"You're lying!" She snapped, pointing the hilt of her lightsaber at her threateningly.

"Why would I lie about Allura? I care about her too!" 

Sierra's eyes widened as her mouth opened and closed. Luna knew about her secret; she knew that she cared for Allura. No one was supposed to know that except for her. 

Luna was taken back when Sierra looked away in pain. She brought her hands up to her head, holding the sides of her lightsabers against her forehead. Sierra’s eyes were squeezed shut as she muffled an agonized cry. In a split second, Sierra’s pale face changed to dull gray and the scarlet markings that Luna saw in her vision appeared on her skin. 

_ “Follow her orders, or Allura will pay the price... listen to her and she’ll be safe…” _ Sierra murmured to herself as her face morphed back into its normal pale tone.

Luna readied herself as Sierra’s groans of pain ceased. The general was silent as she lowered her hands and straightened herself. Without making eye-contact, Sierra ignited her lightsabers, letting the blades  _ hiss  _ against the ground. 

"Shut up!" She roared. "You know nothing!" 

She charged at Luna with her lightsabers held high. She swung them down at her head, but Luna blocked the attack with her bow staff. Sparks hissed off the cool metal where the lightsabers hit. Sierra pushed the lightsabers forward to edge them closer to Luna’s head to land a hit. 

"You know that I’m Force Sensitive!" Luna grunted as she pushed back. "Last night, I saw in a vision that in seven days around midnight Ventress will try to kill Allura!" 

Sierra stopped pushing her lightsabers against the bow staff for a split second. With this small opening, Luna pushed Sierra’s lightsabers off and kicked her to the side. Sierra skidded to a halt and stared at Luna in disbelief. 

Meanwhile, the ship's engines roared to life as it began to hover in the air. The ship turned and slowly began to fly down the path that they took. The bay doors were still lowered as they hovered off the ground. As the ship got higher off the ground, Rex ran to the edge of the doors and held onto one of the bars. He held out his hand, motioning for Luna to run after them. 

"Come on, Katari!" Rex called, watching with worry as Luna and Sierra faced off. 

Luna nodded and swiftly turned to Sierra. Without hesitation, she silently asked Moira's Box to give her a taser disc. The box hissed open and she reached inside for the small silver disc. Once it was in her hands, she readied herself to throw it. 

"I'm telling the truth, Sierra, " Luna spoke calmly. "You were there and you saved her."

Sierra lowered her lightsabers in disbelief. "I-I did?" 

"You did and you contacted The Reaper." 

Sierra’s eyes nearly bugged out of her skull. "I did WHAT?" 

Before she could say anything else, Luna threw the taser disc at Sierra. The general didn't have time to react when it attached to her armor and sent out electric shocks through her body. She fell to the ground with a loud cry, groaning in pain as the disc continued to shock her.

“Protect Allura!" Luna shouted as she sprinted after the ship. 

The ship had turned down the path where Sierra left the soldiers and the Dark Jedi. When she turned down it to follow the ship, the monster was nowhere in sight. Luna grimaced when she saw the torn apart bodies of the soldiers.

A part of Luna was worried that the Dark Jedi was waiting above her to attack. She hoped he didn’t because she had better things to worry about. 

"Katari!" Rex called again. 

The ship was higher now and was almost above the canyon's walls. Luna spotted a large spike that she could use to run up and jump on the ship. However, without the use of a force jump, Luna knew there was a possibility of falling short. In fear of being discovered, she decided to take her chances with a normal jump. 

Luna sprinted up the spike, keeping eye contact with Rex the entire time. The ship was a little bit above the canyon's walls when she got to the tip of the spike. Rex leaned down as far as he could as she launched herself off the spike. 

Luna reached her hand out for Rex's as time seemed to slow. Her stomach dropped, thinking that she wasn’t going to make it. She was going to fall and she was going to fail her people. 

All of those thoughts vanished when she felt Rex grab her hand. 

He grunted as he pulled her up a little too fast. He accidentally pulled her close to him once she was standing on the bay door. Time seemed to stop as they gazed into each other's eyes. He was pulling her against him and holding her hand tightly. If other men did this to her, she would feel very uncomfortable, but she didn't when he did. 

"Rex and Katari get in! We gotta get out here!" Ahsoka yelled, snapping them out of their trance. 

Rex, still holding her hand, pulled her inside as the bay doors shut. Luna reluctantly released his hand and dashed past the stormpedes to the cockpit. Rex followed her once she saw everyone gather inside of the room. Anakin sat in the pilot's chair and flew the ship into the sky. 

"Move," Luna demanded as she tried to push Anakin out of the pilot's seat. 

Anakin cocked his head and furrowed his eyebrows. "Why?" 

"I know how to get us out of here without getting shot down! Now move or I'll move you!" Luna snapped, trying to shove him out of the chair.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rex’s eyes flickered with amusement as he grinned. He was trying not to laugh at her threatening his General, but he also looked impressed. Luna realized a good man like himself would never talk back to a superior, unlike her. 

"As much as I would love to see that, we need to get out of this solar system before we get shot down," Obi-Wan reasoned, grinning. "Anakin, get out of the chair." 

Anakin groaned and got out of the set. Once he was out, Luna hopped in and grabbed the controls. She flew the ship above the clouds and out of the atmosphere swiftly. Once they were in space, she set the ship at full speed. She knew the Ultrisian ships would not be far behind. 

"Someone set a hyperspace course to Coruscant!" Luna ordered. "Ships will be coming at any second!" 

"Already on it!" Ahsoka chirped from behind her. 

After a few moments, ten ships popped up on the ship's radar. Blasts whisked past the ship and Luna snapped the controls to the right. Everyone fell down as the ship turned sharply to evade the blasts. 

"More blasts coming in! Prepare for evasive maneuvers!" Luna shouted before she snapped the ship into a barrel roll.

More blasts continued to fly by the ship as Ahsoka programmed the course. With one pull of a lever, the ship blasted forward at full speed - getting out of range for the ships' blasters. 

"Hyperspace is ready!" Ahsoka called out. 

Luna grabbed the hyperspace lever next to her arm and pushed it forward. The stars before them seem to stretch out as they were launched into hyperspace. Luna sunk in her chair and let out a breath of relief. 

They had escaped Ultris. 

\------------------------

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you guys don't know, I also have this story posted on my Wattpad account (I promise I'm not cringy, at least I hope I'm not lol). I used to write it in 1st POV but I decided to write the rest of it in 3rd POV. I have been switching between editing the 1st POV chapters and writing the new chapters in 3rd POV. There are ten chapters in 1st POV and six new chapters in 3rd POV. I'm hesitant about posting the unedited chapters here because some are kinda cringy in 1st POV in my opinion, but if you guys want them I will post the unedited and the new 3rd POV chapters on here. 
> 
> Just leave a comment and let me know :)


	13. Joining the GAR

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After escaping Ultris, Luna thinks about the people who sacrificed everything for her. Obi-Wan helps her join the GAR.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating for months. School is a bitch. 
> 
> Don't forget to comment, please.

Once a couple of seconds passed after they entered hyperspace, Luna removed herself from the pilot's chair, letting Anakin take control of the ship. A breath of relief escaped her as the Jedi Knight sat down in the chair. As she left the cockpit, she spotted the clone troopers in the back corner. Her eyes were on Captain Rex and Commander Cody as they debriefed the pilot on what had happened in the last two days.

"Thank you, Katari," Obi-Wan said gratefully before Luna could leave the cockpit. 

She wanted a moment alone to process her new harsh reality. Being labeled as a traitor to her people almost brought back the same soul-crushing pain she felt when she lost her parents. It wasn’t just Hecate she had to worry about now, she had to be cautious of every Ultrisian soldier she would inevitably face. 

Luna nodded and gave him a small smile. She wondered if he could tell that she was forcing it. "I was just doing my job."

"Maybe next time when we're facing mortal danger you can actually throw Anakin out of the pilot's chair," Obi-Wan mused as she stepped closer to the door.

Anakin rolled his eyes and shot Obi-Wan an offended look, "Ha-Ha, very funny," Anakin said sarcastically as Ahsoka laughed at him.

Luna gave a quiet chuckled. "Yeah, maybe next time."

As she walked to the back of the ship, Obi-Wan started to talk about their return to Coruscant. Luna didn’t bother to listen to their conversation. All she wanted was to be left alone. 

Once she was out of the cockpit, the doors hissed as they closed behind her, The Jedi's conversation became muffled murmurs with the door closed. She ran her gaze over the small room. It had a few seats attached to the wall. She noticed the door that led to the lower level where the Stormpedes were in the far corner of the room. If she had time, she decided she would go down to check on the stormpedes. Luna stepped over to a seat and fell into it. She closed her eyes, letting her arms rest at her sides.

Luna groaned as she stretched out her arms and legs, trying to loosen up her overworked muscles. Her body was consumed by aches, but it wasn’t just physical pain. Everything that happened was stabbing her in the heart, repeatedly. Queen Pandora damned the people of Ultris when she joined the Separatists, Luna had left the only place she called home, and her team was going to be either put to death or Controlled for treason.

She didn't know how she could save Ultris from Queen Pandora either with or without the GAR. Taking back Ultris would be almost impossible. Even if Ultris was successfully invaded and Queen Pandora was overthrown, by ancient Ultrisian Law Sierra would become queen. However, if she could prove to Ultris's citizens that Sierra was a Dark Jedi, then she would forfeit her right to become queen and Allura would be next in line.

Ultris had been Luna’s only home. She had never traveled to another world that wasn't an Ultrisian Territory. Coruscant would be the first Outsider World that she would step foot on. Her stomach churned nervously at the thought of it.

Leaving her team behind almost felt worse than leaving her mom to die. She had blamed herself for her parents’ murder. If only she had her lightsabers, then maybe she could have done something to save them. Along with the guilt that she bore for what happened seven years ago, she blamed herself for the sacrifice that her team made. Luna would never forgive herself for what happened.

She didn’t realize she was crying until her tears landed on her lap. She quickly wiped away her tears before she hunched over in her seat. She placed her elbows on her legs and rested her face in her hands. The weight of her guilt felt as heavy as an Ultrisian Battleship.

The _hiss_ of the cockpit door took her out of her thoughts. For a moment, she could hear the Jedi's conversation before the door closed again. She didn't hear much except the words, "Rishi Moon" and "Inspection."

Once the door closed, she could hear footsteps coming towards her. She raised her head slightly and was met with the captain giving her a comforting smile. Just as he entered, the Light Amulet released a spark of warmth. His helmet was tucked under one arm and his free hand held a small ration bar. He stood in front of her and held out the gray, wrapped bar.

"I thought you might be hungry," Rex said as he sat down next to her, placing his helmet in the chair next to him.

Luna’s stomach growled as she stared at the ration bar in his hand. She realized that she hadn't eaten anything in two days. She guessed all of the adrenaline made her forget about her hunger.

Luna flashed him a thankful smile and slowly took the ration bar from his hand. "Thanks."

She quickly tore off the top of the gray wrapper and took a bite of it. She frowned; it wasn't awful, but it wasn't great either. The dry bar was tasteless and difficult to chew. She eyed the bar in confusion once she swallowed it.

"How can something so flavorless leave such a terrible after taste?" Luna joked as she glanced down at the bar again before she took another bite.

Rex snickered. "I've been wondering that for a while."

There was a long pause as she finished the ration bar. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Rex looking at her, puzzled. She figured he was trying to spark a conversation. She always thought she was easy to talk to, but she guessed the captain was a little shy. She grinned nervously and scratched the back of her neck.

"You know, I do feel kinda bad for yelling at General Skywalker."

Rex snorted. "Why? You saved our lives and it was pretty funny."

Luna shrugged. "I know, but when we get to Coruscant Obi-Wan is going to help me join the GAR. I'm just afraid I'll be assigned under the legion that he operates 'cause I'm pretty sure he does not like me."

"I don't think he hates you. I think he's just threatened by you because you have more experience than him," Rex admitted, letting out a small chuckle. "I believe experience outranks everything and you definitely have more experience with Ultrisian Attack Ships than any of us. So, I think you were right to do that."

"Thanks," Luna said as she turned to him, grinning. "I like that, it means I outrank you."

Rex's eyes glowed with amusement. He put his hand on his chest and his mouth fell open as if Luna truly offended him. He shook his head and chuckled.

"I doubt that," Rex laughed.

Luna cocked an eyebrow, "Oh, so you think you could've flown us out of Ultris with attack ships firing at us?" 

Rex shrugged. "I've never been a very good pilot, so no," he grinned.

Luna slapped her hands against her thighs and stood up. "Boom! There, I rest my case," She laughed. "I guess I'm more experienced than you."

Rex quickly stood up next to her, crossing his arms. He smirked and rolled his eyes playfully. "I bet there are lots of things that I can do that you can't."

_"Yeah, like being so damn cute all the time,"_ Luna wanted to say.

She gave him a lopsided grin before she placed a finger on her lip, pondering over his words. She took a quick glance at him, seeing Rex giving her an amused look. She snapped her fingers when she thought of something.

"I can't do that spin thing that you do with your blasters before you put them in the holster."

"You mean this?" Rex grinned as he grabbed one of his blasters from its holster. With little effort, but with such skill, he spun his blaster in his hand before he placed it back into its holster. "Really? The _skillful_ Nixa Katari can't do this?"

A faint blush formed on her cheeks as she laughed again. "Yeah, I can't do that."

"Well, I guess I'm more experienced than you, Katari," Rex teased, copying her statement. He turned his head to hide the flirtatious smirk he made.

Before Luna could make a clever comeback, the cockpit door opened, revealing Commander Cody standing at its entrance. He looked directly at Rex and motioned toward Anakin and Obi-Wan behind him.

"The generals need to talk to us about our upcoming inspection on the Rishi Moon Base," Cody informed before he made his way over to the Generals.

Rex nodded and sauntered over to his helmet and picked it up. Tucking it under his arm, he stepped toward the cockpit door. He looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"It was nice talking to you, Nixa."

Luna nodded, "Likewise, Rex," she said before the door closed behind him.

**\----------------------------**

About four hours had passed when they finally arrived at Coruscant. Luna had entered the cockpit so she could get a good view of the Outsider Planet. She had heard from intelligence officers on Ultris that the city was beautiful. When her gaze fell on the city covered planet, her once excited expression formed into a distasteful frown.

Rex noticed and nudged her with his elbow. "What's wrong?" He asked in a low whisper.

"I heard that this planet was supposed to be great," Luna murmured with disgust. "I thought I would see beautiful landscapes, not pollution and crime."

"It's not too bad, you'll get used to the city," He affirmed, running his gaze across the city.

"I doubt it. I like being in nature more than being in a crazy city like this."

Rex nodded. "I'll have to agree with you on that one."

After about fifteen minutes, they finally landed at the Jedi Temple. Three Jedi came out of the Temple and took the Stormpedes inside the temple so they could be more comfortable in the new environment. Obi-Wan assured Luna they would be taken to a different planet where they would be happy and safe.

Obi-Wan instructed her to follow them to the Council room inside the Temple. As she entered the enormous building with the Jedi and Clone Troopers, she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't supposed to be in there. It felt wrong to even step near the temple.

Luna’s morals as a Gray Jedi conflicted with the Jedi Code. The Jedi and Gray Jedi had a history to argue over the subjects they didn't agree with. One of the major ones was attachments. The Gray Jedi believed attachments were just a part of life and it was natural to fall in love with someone. Jedi were required to swear off any attachments because they believed it would bring one to the Dark Side. In the past, when Jedi interacted with Gray Jedi it was usually over the Attachments Debate.

Once they arrived in front of the Jedi High Council room's doors, Obi-Wan turned around to face Anakin and Luna.

"Anakin and Katari, come with me to the Council room, the rest of you wait out here," Obi-Wan ordered.

Ahsoka, Rex, and Cody nodded as the door to the Council room opened. The two Jedi Generals entered with Luna following them.

"Good luck," Rex said, sincerely.

Luna turned around, smiling. "Thanks, I might need it," she said before the doors closed behind her.

Once she turned back around to face the council, she noticed only five seats were occupied. Two seats were taken by two holograms of a calm looking Togruta woman and Kel Dor man. The other three were taken by Obi-wan, another by a seemingly stern dark-skinned man, and a small, green man. Anakin stood in front of Luna with his hands behind his back. The stern man turned to Obi-Wan.

"Since Queen Pandora joined the Separatists, I take the mission to Ultris did not go as planned," The man said.

"You correct, Master Windu," Obi-Wan nodded. "It turned out to be a trap orchestrated between Count Dooku and the queen."

Anakin stepped to the side and revealed Luna to the Council. She gulped and placed her hands behind her as her stomach twisted nervously.

"As much as I would hate to admit it, we probably would not have been able to escape without the help of Captain Nixa Katari," Anakin informed, motioning his hand to her.

Luna stepped forward and bowed her head. "Hello, it is an honor to meet all of you," She greeted with her voice shaking slightly. 

"Katari and I spoke while we were escaping and she wants to join the GAR," Obi-Wan informed before motioning his hand at each individual Jedi. "Katari, this is Master Shaak Ti, Master Plo Koon, Master Mace Windu, and Grand Master Yoda."

The Jedi Masters stared at her almost emotionlessly. Yoda, however, gave her a small, welcoming smile.

"Welcome, Captain Katari. Tell us why you wish to join, you will," Master Yoda stated.

Luna had to resist the urge to make an odd face at Yoda. She was surprised by the way he talked. She had never met anyone who spoke like that. She had never heard of Master Yoda's species either.

Luna quickly nodded. "Queen Pandora betrayed Ultris’s ancient ways and damned my people when she joined the Separatists," She began, seeing that the Jedi Masters were listening to her intently. "I follow Ultris's ancient laws to the very letter and I refuse to idly stand by while my people suffer by the Sith."

"And how can you help the GAR?" Master Plo Koon asked, moving his clawed hand away from his face.

"I am - was - a Black OPS Captain in Ultris's army. I know their battle strategies, weaknesses to their weapons and defenses, and I know where most of the Ultrisian bases are located in the Outer Rim." Luna reasoned as she kept her gaze on the Kel Dor. "If you want to have any chance of winning this war with Ultris supplying weapons to the Separatists, then you'll need me."

"It's true," Obi-Wan spoke. "When she was helping us escape, she knew how to delay the Ultrisian soldiers long enough to take us to the ship. She also managed to fly us out of the atmosphere without getting shot down by the attack ships."

The Jedi Masters looked at each other and nodded. A relieved breath escaped her when she noticed that Master Yoda seemed pleased with her response. 

"Wait outside while we discuss, you will," Yoda said as he turned to the other Jedi Masters.

A pain of guilt stabbed her in the chest as she glanced down at her hands. Should she tell them who she really was? She couldn't lie to them when they were trying to decide if she could join the GAR or not. It would've been better if she told them, she decided, instead of them finding out later.

"Wait," Luna spoke out with a shaking voice, "there's something you should know about me before you decide." The Jedi eyed her suspiciously as she pulled out the Light Amulet. "Nixa Katari is a fake person."

Luna laid the smooth pendant on her chest and tapped it. A soft white glow took over her clothes as they took a different form. She closed her eyes as her form began to change. Her short, jet-black hair grew thicker and longer as it changed to its natural sun-gold color. Her skin shifted into its bright olive color as her face became more heart-shaped. Her brown eyes grew bigger as they changed to sky blue while her lips thickened and formed into a deeper shade of pink.

The Light Amulet seemed to melt away her armor and replace it with her Gray Jedi attire. The white, long-sleeved shirt hugged her body, showing off her curves. The diamond-shaped cutouts that ran along the side of the sleeves were the only place where skin showed. Covering her legs underneath the white kama were light-gray leggings. White boots replaced her dirtied combat boots. 

Once Luna’s transformation was done, she opened her eyes and studied the shocked Council members. All of them stared at her with wide eyes ( she assumed Master Plo Koon was too because she couldn't see most of his face due to his mask). Anakin was probably the most surprised by her reveal out of everyone. His jaw went slack as he eyed her in bewilderment.

"My real name is Luna Starborn," she revealed with pride. "I am the last member of the Gray Jedi Order on Ultris and I am one of the last shapeshifting Ultrisians."

Mace Windu shot his harsh gaze over to Anakin and Obi-Wan. "Did either of you know about this?" 

Anakin shook his head. "No."

"She told me when we were escaping," Obi-Wan replied before retelling them the story of how her parents were murdered.

While Obi-Wan spoke, she morphed back into Nixa Katari and pressed the Light Amulet to turn back into her armor. Luna turned away as Obi-Wan told the council of her parents’ deaths. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Anakin giving her a sympathetic look as if he knew her pain. The glow from the amulet faded as Obi-Wan began to explain why she cut herself off from the Force.

"She's been hiding as Nixa Katari ever since," He finished.

"And I would like to keep it that way as long as I can," Luna added, rubbing her throat when her voice changed back to Nixa's hoarse, stern one. "I don't want Hecate finding me when I'm trying to help the Republic end this war. She will kill anyone who stands in her way and I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me."

"You can't let fear cloud your judgment, Luna," Plo Koon spoke wisely. "We may need Luna Starborn more than Nixa Katari one day."

Luna nodded as she placed the Light Amulet under her armor. "I know and I understand that, but until that day comes I'll just be Nixa Katari."

"There's one question that remains," Shaak Ti insisted as she motioned her hand towards Luna, "should we allow her - a Gray Jedi - to join the GAR?"

Mace Windu nodded in agreement.

"If you think I'm here to bring Jedi to my order you are completely mistaken," Luna defended, slightly offended they would think that. "I am here to free my people and end your war."

The Jedi eyed each other and nodded when they made a silent agreement. Master Yoda motioned to the door with his hand.

"Unless more secrets you have, wait outside you will."

Luna nodded and ambled towards the door. The door opened and closed behind her as she stepped into the small room Ahsoka, Rex, and Cody were waiting in. She released the breath that she had been holding in, groaning. 

Luna believed she ruined her only chance to get into the GAR because she told them she was a Gray Jedi. Did the Jedi really despise the Gray Jedi Order because of the different codes? Did they really believe she would try to persuade Jedi to join her order just because she was the last Gray Jedi (as far as I knew)? But she came to fight the Separatists. She had zero intentions to convert Jedi to her order.

Ahsoka gave Luna a friendly smile when she saw the worried look on her face. "Are you okay?"

"No."

"Did it not go well?" She asked, making a slight frown.

"It was going well at the beginning, but it crashed and burned at the end. Just like my life."

"I doubt that. You probably did fine!" She encouraged cheerfully.

Luna lowered her hands and gave Ahsoka a small smile. The young padawan reminded her of herself before her parents died. She was such a charming and brave girl. Just by looking at her, Luna knew she would become a powerful Force user and make a difference in this galaxy someday.

Rex and Cody left their spot on the other side of the room and made their way over to Ahsoka and Luna. 

"I'll be very surprised if they don't let you join," Rex admitted, trying to make Luna feel better. 

"I think General Kenobi would give a very compelling argument on your behalf if they weren't convinced enough already," Cody added.

Luna tried to believe what the commanders said as she studied the door to the council chamber. She frowned when she couldn't make out the quiet murmurs from the Jedi as they discussed. Her head fell, thinking that it was hopeless to believe that they would let her join. 

Luna sighed. "Thanks, but I think-"

“ **HOLD ON-”**

Luna was quickly interrupted by the loud, annoyed voice of Anakin. The four of them turned to the door, baffled by Anakin's voice. Luna couldn't tell what he was saying, but he was clearly talking to Obi-Wan. A moment passed and Obi-Wan's muffled voice came through the door. He sounded as if he was reasoning with Anakin, which Luna assumed happened often.

"FINE!" Anakin exasperated before following the exclamation with an annoyed retort that Luna couldn't make out.

Ahsoka and the Clone troopers stepped away from Luna as the door to the Council room opened. Obi-Wan and Anakin stepped out of the room as the door closed behind them. Obi-Wan looked quite pleased with himself as he gave her a proud grin while Anakin looked beyond pissed. While Anakin tried to hide it, it was impossible not to see his eyebrows furrowed together and the frown he had. Luna almost wanted to laugh at his displeased look.

"Nixa Katari," Anakin said as he tried to look professional instead of being absolutely annoyed, "welcome to the 501st Legion."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this chapter was kinda uneventful. The next one is in Allura's POV. Thanks for reading!


	14. Allura: The Fate of the Amazons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura decides to speak with the Amazons before they receive their punishment for committing treason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS MENTIONS OF VERBAL ABUSE!

All Allura ever wanted was to gain her mother's approval.

It seemed ever since she was born, Queen Pandora despised her very existence. No one knew why; some royal advisors thought it was because of her father’s mysterious death a few days before she was born. The castle’s help told her they were completely in love with each other. Pandora was so happy whenever Salin Crux was with her, but after he died she changed. She grew colder by the day and became more stern and impatient. Everyone assumed she took the anger of his death on her.

However, Allura believed she resented her because she was nothing like her sister. Sierra was cold, merciless, and fearless. Always the one to look for a fight and showed little empathy to others. Allura couldn’t be more different from her older sister. She just wanted to help people in any way she could. Whenever she would voice her concerns for Ultris's starving lower class, Pandora would wave her off and toss her to the side like she didn't matter.

When Allura was little, she didn't listen to the maid’s warnings, she wanted to prove to her mother that she was worth her time. Day after day, heartbreak after heartbreak, Allura tried to show her that she was a good daughter like Sierra. She tried being ahead of all of her classes, she tried to be more well-behaved than Sierra at their mother's banquet parties, and she even took combat lessons in secret to impress her one day! Allura lost count of the number of nights she stayed in her room, crying because her mother rejected her again.

_ "Go away you a waste of space,"  _ Pandora hissed when Allura tried to tell her her recent successes in the classroom. She was only nine years old at the time. _ "I can't believe you are my daughter. You are pathetic." _

Allura didn't want to believe that her mother hated her. She didn't want to believe that Pandora made her own sister hate her too. All Allura wanted was to have either of them say,  _ "I love you," _ at least once to her. Of course, that never happened and she doubted that anyone would ever say that to her. 

Allura was ten when she finally realized that her mother would never love her. She would never be able to impress her in anything, no matter how hard she tried. When she was ten, her mother just about had it with Allura living in the castle, so she sent her to the worst boarding school in the entire galaxy - Queen Granta's School for Feral Children.

The school had been built about five hundred years ago under Granta, the Queen of Perfection's rule. She built the enormous castle that still stands today, to make "feral" children mindless drones. Allura was stuck in that living hell for eight years and still suffers from countless nights of unceasing nightmares about that place. 

Allura didn't stop exceeding in her classes nor did she stop taking combat lessons in secret. She was one of the top students at Queen Granta's School for Feral Children. She was a year-round student, so she didn't see the castle for eight years. She never received any letters from her mother or sister - not that she wanted any.

When Allura graduated, she went back to the castle and became the senator for Ultris. Nothing changed - Pandora was still a venomous bitch and Sierra wasn't any better. After about a month, she met Sierra's rival, Nixa Katari. She soon became one of her only friends, and after about a year, she revealed herself as Luna Starborn.

When Allura became a senator, her main focus was to improve the lives of the poorest citizens. To put it plainly, Pandora was on her way to become the worst queen in Ultrisian history. Before she even announced she was joining the Separatists, her public approval rating was at 22% - one of the worst in history. This was caused by her raising taxes for her own benefit. She would throw countless balls and use most of the money to buy more outlandish jewelry and dresses for herself. Only a small percent of the money was used to help the citizens.

Under her rule, the unemployment rate was at an all-time high and more people were becoming homeless. Allura tried to tell her what was happening to the citizens, but she ignored her concerns for the people. Since she joined the Separatists, her approval rating dropped to 10%.

"I swear her approval rating is going to be so low that she'll end up in the negatives," Allura muttered after she finished reading another article on her datapad.

Hours before, Allura had stolen copies of the files on the members of the Amazon Team from the Royal Archives. It had been two days since Luna helped the Jedi and Clone Troopers escape the city. If what Allura heard was true, then Luna had already escaped the planet with them only two hours ago. She prayed that Luna would be able to join the GAR. She was Ultris's only hope to be freed from the Separatists.

Queen Pandora had announced the day before that the Amazon's punishment would be Controllment. She knew they were excellent soldiers, even though they committed treason; it would be a waste to kill them. Allura planned to visit them in their cells and talk to them before their public Controllment later that day. The problem was...she didn't know them very well. She only knew Luna from the Amazon team.

Before Allura read the files, she locked her door and walked over to her windows to cover them with the navy blue window drapes. Through the windows, Allura’s gaze ran along the cloudy sky and her face hardened. Pandora would say it would be the perfect weather for a public Controllment.

Allura stepped over to her couch and projected the Amazon files via hologram on the table. She sat down on the plush cushions and made sure her storm gray and scarlet dress was laid out neatly. Panora had sent a maid to give her the dress with instructions to wear it for the day in the morning. Allura grimaced when she first laid eyes on it. The long, silky dress was form-fitting above the waist and fell around her legs loosely. The dress was mostly gray with sharp, scarlet lines that ran down the long sleeves and her sides. The lines weaved together to form a braid-like pattern. The scarlet collar wrapped around her shoulders to expose her collar bone and dipped down to reveal a little bit of her cleavage.

Allura’s honey-colored hair was pulled up in a large, braided bun. Pinned into the center of the bun was a round, quarter-sized ruby. To match the ruby, Pandora gave her gold, ruby earrings and a necklace with a small, diamond-shaped pendant with the small gem in the middle of it. Her makeup - which Allura always detested - was done to her mother's personal view of perfection. Her lips were a dark shade of red and her eyelids were covered in different shades of gray and black to match the dress. Allura was disgusted with herself every time she looked at a mirror; she looked as heinous as her mother.

Allura questionably looked at the nearly empty files for a moment. She thought they would be bigger than this. They only had about three or four pages in them while other soldiers had about twenty. She sighed, figuring that it was due to the Amazon team being in the small Black OPS division on Ultris.

Allura picked the first file - Zaria Rain’s - the team's weapons and combat specialist. As she scanned the document, she frowned at the lack of information that it gave. It only had physical descriptions and blacked out almost everything about her past. She already knew what they looked like thanks to Luna. The only thing she could find about Zaria was that she came from one of the Ultrisian territories and enrolled in the academy when she was sixteen.

The next one was Emmie Win, the Amazon medic. Just like the last one, the file only gave basic information about her. The one thing that popped out was that she was trying to become a doctor and not just a field medic, but that would never happen now.

Allura swiped to another file and this time it barely had any basic information. It was Nari Un-Shade's file and most of the information had been blacked out. The only thing that she could find out was that Nari was placed in a different training program that was known for producing excellent scouts and hackers.

Her curiosity peaked at Helena Dun-Gray’s file. The Dun-Grays were an ancient family tracing back to the Monarch War. They were extremely wealthy and were known for their military expertise. When Allura scanned through the file, she discovered that Helena’s father was General Heron Dun-Gray, who was known for his great battle strategies. As Allura read further into the file, she found out that Helena’s mother, Astrid Dun-Gray had died after giving birth to her little brother, Caleb. Unfortunately for him, he had been sent to Queen Granta's School for Feral Children.

Deciding that she had gathered enough information, Allura turned off the hologram and hid the device under the couch. She would have to destroy any evidence of her theft later - she had bigger problems to worry about now. 

She had to speak with the Amazon’s.

**\---------------------------**

When Allura arrived at the prison, she noticed that the guards were stationed at the ends of the hallways of their cells instead of their doors. The four Amazon members had been given their own individual cell and were allowed to wear their armor. However, their weapons had been taken away and stored in the prison storage room.

The guards paid little attention to Allura as she rounded the corner to their cells. She lowered her head and sighed. She wished she could break them out herself, but the entire planet had been on full lockdown ever since Luna escaped with the Jedi and Clone Troopers. It would be impossible to break them out.

"You bring dishonor upon the Dun-Gray family, Helena," A deep, harsh voice spat.

Allura raised her head up, bewildered, and spotted a man standing in front of Helena's cell door. Even though she had only met him once in a meeting, Allura recognized him as General Heron Dun-Gray. The built man was in his early fifties and easily stood a foot over her. His short gray hair held white specks of white and was combed back. His trimmed beard helped to cover most of his scars and wrinkles on his hardened face. Like Helena, her father had charcoal-gray eyes, but his held nothing but rage and sadness within them.

Her father was covered in heavy, gunmetal gray armor that was very similar to Sierra’s. It was made out of a special metal that could deflect blaster shots. The armor held a tremendous amount of scratches and burn marks. A torn silver cap was fastened to the General's left shoulder and came down to his hip. Attached to his back was a large silver trident that was almost as tall as Allura. Carved into his gauntlets and boots was a symbol of a trident that looked very similar to the one attached to his back.

As Allura got closer to the two, she saw Helena standing before the ray-shield with her arms crossed. A scowl had formed while she death-glared her father. She noticed the other Amazon members were hiding in the corner of their cells to try to stay out of the conversation that was happening.

"Like I give a damn!" Helena scoffed before snapping at her father. "You're the one that brought shame onto this family for what you did to Caleb!"

Heron's expression hardened and his eyes glowed with rage. "That little monster deserved what he got! He killed your mother!"

"He did  _ not  _ kill her and he is  _ not  _ a monster you wicked man!" Helena shouted, defending her little brother. "What I did was right!"

Heron threw out his hands and exclaimed, "You disobeyed the crown! You committed treason!"

"I was trying to save Ultris! I was trying to save Caleb!" Helena hollered with her voice echoing through the prison halls.

Heron lowered his fists as he glowered at Helena. There was a silent pause as the two glared at each other. Neither of them dared to look away from the other's harsh gaze. Heron snarled and turned to Allura, still keeping his eyes on his daughter.

"If you did this for Caleb, then he shall suffer as well," He growled before marching passed Allura.

Terror overtook Helena's face as she slammed her fists against the wall of her cell. Her face paled as a tear ran down her cheek as her eyes followed her father.

"Don't you dare lay a finger on Caleb!" Helena screamed, pounding her fist against the door frame. "You son of a bitch! If you do I swear I'll-"

Heron swung around to face Helena. "You'll do what? Kill me?" He tempted with a grin before he turned down the hallway.

More tears fell down Helena's cheek as she watched her father disappear. She cried out before punching the metal wall with all her might. Zaria, Nari, and Emmie ran to their doors and stood by idly as Helena fell to the ground in tears. The three of them lowered their heads as their sadness for their comrade clouded their features.

"That...bastard," Helena whimpered, choking up as she cried into her hands.

"Helena, I am so sorry," Allura said, stepping towards her cell door. "I will do everything I can from getting to your brother."

Helena's crying ceased as her head shot up at Allura in anger. Her red puffy eyes were burning into hers. She pulled herself up and stood in front of the ray-shield, frowning as she glared at Allura.

"How do you know about Caleb?"

"I-I read your file," Allura stammered, nervously.

"You read my file?" Helena snapped. Her face traveled dangerously closer to the ray shield.

"I read all of your files," Allura admitted in a quiet voice.

All the Amazons stared at her in bewilderment. Zaria, who had her ponytail shot off in the fight and was now sporting a singed pixie cut, shook her head and crossed her arms. Nari and Emmie didn't seem to care as much as Helena did; just...bewildered.

"I'm sorry. I just don’t know you guys very well and I wanted to come and talk to all of you before, uh, you know," Allura explained awkwardly, avoiding their gaze.

"You know you could've just talked to us, right?" Zaria said with an amused tone.

"Yeah, we don't bite. Well, at least us the three don't, I can't be sure with Helena," Emmie teased as Helena gave off a low growl.

Allura was too nervous and embarrassed to take her eyes off the ground. "Yeah, I don't really like talking to other people too much. Especially when they are known to be one of the most dangerous women in Ultrisian History."

Nari laughed. "Wow, they should call you, Allura, The Princess of Introverts, in the history books then."

She earned a light chuckle from her teammates. Allura laughed too, agreeing with her statement. She never liked talking to people or being in big crowds for that matter. She would much rather be in her room or perhaps the royal library. Whenever she was forced to attend a party her mother threw, she would station herself in a hidden corner and sneak out at the first opportunity. 

"Enough chatter, I came down here for a reason," Allura spoke with new-found confidence. 

The Amazons’ attention were quickly taken by her, shocked by her authoritative tone. Allura quickly glanced at the guards to make sure they weren't listening. 

"My intel has informed me that Luna successfully escaped Ultris with the Jedi and Clone Troopers about two hours ago," Allura whispered. “I’m waiting for updates if she joined the GAR or not.”

The Amazons released a breath of relief as their stress washed off of them. Their limbs quickly loosened and their shoulders slumped as proud smiles formed on their lips. 

"Thank Ulta," Helena breathed. The rest of the Amazons nodded in agreement.

"At least one good thing happened before they Control us," Nari uttered as she leaned against the wall.

"Now all we need to do now is wait," Emmie asserted quietly.

"Or die," Zaria added coldly. "They are probably going to send us into the worst suicide missions as possible."

Allura’s face fell, knowing that she was right. It was the hard truth that each of them had to deal with and she couldn't do anything to stop it. Criminals that were Controlled have a high chance of being killed in high-risk missions within the first few months of their punishment. But the criminals that were Controlled typically didn’t have years of rigorous training like the Amazons. She hoped their skills would keep them alive long enough for Allura or Luna to free them. 

"I'm sorry, I wish I could do something to stop this, but I can't," Allura apologized, peering down at the ground in shame.

"It's okay," Helena whispered. “We already knew that no one could save us when we were arrested.”

Emmie shrugged. "We knew what we were getting into. Now it’s time to pay the price."

A loud  _ hiss  _ of a door opening quickly grabbed Allura’s attention. The familiar sound of marching soldiers followed the echoing  _ hiss _ that came from the end of the hallway. Allura quickly turned back to the team, knowing that the soldiers were there to take them to their public Controllment.

Out of the corner of Allura’s eye, she spotted Sierra turning down the hallway with eight guards marching in two rows following her. Sierra was still wearing her armor after being in it for over twelve hours. Allura quickly noticed the thin jagged lines and scorched marks on her chest plate. She assumed Sierra must have been electrocuted during her pursuit for Luna. She had to hide her proud look; Sierra’s armor had one major weakness - electricity. 

When Sierra’s eyes fell on Allura, her hardened expression fell. Fear wiped over her face as she stared at Allura in shock. She glanced at Allura and then the Amazon team before she ordered the soldiers to take them out of their cells.

"Wait are you doing here?" Sierra questioned. Her voice was concerned but was still harsh.

"I came here to see if they had any last requests, but I was interrupted when  _ you  _ got here," Allura answered, glaring at her.

While the two sisters stared down at each other, the soldiers deactivated the ray-shields and pulled the team members out by their arms. Once they bound their arms behind their backs, the guards formed into a line behind Sierra and Allura. Helena was in the front with Emmie, Nari, and Zaria following her. Sierra turned away from Allura’s gaze, eyeing the Amazons before looking back at her little sister.

"Well, do they?" Sierra snapped, towering over Allura. 

"I do," Helena spoke up, lifting her head. She tried to unsuccessfully hide the tears welling up in her eyes by facing away from Sierra, but the guards forced her to look at the general. "There's a letter in my back pocket that is addressed to my brother. If you could give it to him, that would make this more bearable for me." 

Sierra stepped towards her and reached into her back pocket. When she pulled out a small envelope, Allura quickly noticed the words,  _ ‘To Caleb,’  _ written in elegant handwriting. Sierra studied the envelope and peered up at Helena.

"Why would you think I would allow that?" Sierra sneered, clenching the envelope 

The tears Helena was desperately trying to hide successfully escaped. Allura’s heart shattered into a million pieces when she saw the sadness and regret in Helena’s eyes. She truly loved her brother. It made Allura wish Sierra felt that toward her. 

"Please, I haven't seen or talked to him in seven years!"

Allura’s heart pained as Helena pleaded with Sierra. Before Allura could stop herself, she snatched the letter from Sierra's grasp. Silence fell over them when Sierra shot her eyes down at Allura’s hand and gave her a deadly glare. Allura kept the letter behind her back and glared back at Sierra challengingly. No matter how much her sister scared her, Allura refused to back down.

"I'll give him the letter, you have my word," Allura promised, still not backing down from Sierra in their standoff.

"Thank you," Helena breathed, letting her head hang.

"You're welcome," Allura said, still not breaking her gaze.

Sierra growled lowly, turning away from Allura to order the guards to take the Amazon team away. Allura smirked with pride as she walked passed Sierra, knowing that she had won. 

"I'll meet you on the hover pad in fifteen then," Allura informed Sierra, knowing her sister was staring her down with every step she took. 

**\------------------------------**

After Allura left Sierra and the Amazon team, she sprinted up to her room and hid the letter in her bedroom. She placed it under a loose tile where she kept a blaster and a couple of throwing knives. Once she made sure the tile was secure, she ran to the turbo lift and entered the floor where the hover pad room was located.

When she entered the northern chamber of the room, she was met with two long rows of guards that led up to Queen Pandora. The chamber's white walls were decorated with silver and gold murals of the city. The square room's floor was decorated with a white marble tile. A path of gold ran up to the hover pad where Pandora was standing. In front of the queen was the front wall that would slide open to let the silver hover pad fly slowly down the main path to the Ulta Statue. 

Allura nearly cowered away from her mother's cold gaze as she stared down at her. Allura gulped and slowly made her way over to her. Like most of Pandora’s gowns, hers was made entirely out of black velvet. Sparkling red rubies, garnets, and diamonds decorated her long sleeves, collar, and the bottom half of her dress.

Resting on her head was her enormous crown. Her hair was wrapped up in a tight bun and was adorned with countless scarlet gems. With her makeup, Allura thought she was ten times more terrifying. Her red lipstick was blood red and her dark eyeshadow and eyeliner were done sharply.

Allura bowed in front of her. "Hello, mother," she greeted quietly.

Pandora rolled her eyes. "Just get up here, Allura," she hissed.

Allura nodded and stepped onto the large hover pad. Pandora turned around and stood in front. Just as Allura took her place behind her mother, Sierra marched out of the turbo lift and took her place next to Allura. The queen nodded at the guards, signaling them to take their place at the four corners of the pad. Once they were in position, the clear force field bubble formed around the pad as it hovered above the ground.

"I would've given that letter to her brother you know," Sierra muttered quietly so Pandora wouldn't hear.

Allura glanced at her, perplexed by her statement. She quickly scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah right, I bet you would have."

The door slid open before them and revealed citizens of Ultris. Once they saw Queen Pandora, the citizens fell silent, struck with fear. The pad began to move forward to hover over the people sixty feet below them. On each side of the path were towering buildings that loomed over them. The way to the statue had three paths that were attached to the buildings. There were bridges and turbo lifts that connected each path. There was a ground one that was below them and was packed with people. The blue paths that ran alongside the buildings were smaller than the main one and held fewer people. 

Hovering above each path were giant screens that either showed an image of Queen Pandora, Sierra and Allura, or the Amazon team that was being kept at the foot of the statue. 

The team members were kneeling with their hands cuffed behind their backs. The four of them watched the hover pad coldly as it got closer to the statue. 

"I'm being serious," Sierra defended in a low voice.

"I know you, Sierra, you wouldn't have done that," Allura replied harshly. 

Queen Pandora sneered as she looked down at Allura out of the corner of her eye. "Allura, why are chatting instead of being a  _ silent statue _ ?" She seethed through gritted teeth.

"Sorry, mother," Allura quickly said before bowing her head.

After a moment passed, Sierra leaned near Allura and whispered,  _ "You don't really know me." _

Allura shot Sierra a look of bewilderment and scoffed. What did she mean by that? Of course, Allura knew her! She was the one who hated her very existence as much as Pandora! 

The pad began to descend to the front of the statue where the Amazon team was. They were placed on the silver, oval-shaped ceremonial platform. There were steps that led up to the platform. Etched into the center of the platform was an image of the planet and the stars surrounding it.

The Amazon team was lined up in a horizontal line starting with Helena, Emmie, Nari, and Zaria. Stationed behind each Amazon team member was a guard with a gray, metal box in their hands. Stamped on the side of each box were the words,  _ ‘Control Unit.’ _

Once the pad stopped in front of the platform, the guards followed the three royals as they stepped off of it one by one. Sierra and Allura followed their mother until she moved to be behind the Amazon team. Sierra and Allura stood on the side and watched as their mother began her speech.

"Citizens of Ultris," Pandora announced, her voice booming over the speakers that were placed around the city, "I come here today to bring justice!"

Her hand shot to the Amazons, sneering as she ran her gaze over them. She advanced to Helena and snapped her fingers at the soldier. The soldier nodded and pressed in a code to open the box. The box opened with a hiss and released a puff of steam. She motioned for the other soldiers to do the same and follow her lead.

"These soldiers, Helena Dun-Gray, Emmie Win, Zaria Rain, and Nari Un-Shade, have committed treason!" Pandora declared as she pulled out the turquoise, scorpion-like device from the box.

The device squirmed and hissed while it was in Pandora’s grasp. The crowd began to scream in terror when the other soldiers followed the queen’s lead and pulled out the other Control devices.

Nari looked over her shoulder and shuttered. "This is about to suck  _ major  _ ass," she broadcasted, loud enough for the microphones to pick up.

Allura gulped as she watched her mother lower the device. The Amazon members expression's hardened as they tried to push through this awful experience. As they tried to put on a brave face, the soldiers roughly grabbed their heads and pushed them down to expose the back of their necks. The needles were dangerously close to their skin.

"For that, they shall be Controlled!" Pandora roared as she thrust the Control Device into Helena's neck.

Helena's eyes shot open as she released a painful cry. Her head jerked up as the other Amazon members had their own Control devices harshly implanted into them. All of them began to cry out as the color drew out of their skin. Pandora and the soldiers stepped away as they began to writhe in pain.

The crowd howled even louder than before as they watched the Amazons fall to the ground. The Control devices fastened around their necks and their eyes almost rolled back into their skull. Suddenly, their screams ceased and they stopped moving. Allura believed they were dead until their cuffs were deactivated. She froze in terror as the four Amazon members stood up slowly and turned towards the queen with dull, empty eyes.

"We're ready to serve you, my queen."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did you guys enjoy the new POV with Allura?  
> What do you think will be the future for the Amazon team?  
> I'm just curious because I'm a whore for hearing theories.


End file.
